Red-shouldered Hawk

Distinctive banded tail feather from a medium-sized hawk. Adults have a reddish-brown 'shoulder' and a heavily barred breast, with striking black-and-white wing and tail patterns visible in flight.

Boldly banded with alternating wide dark brown/blackish bands and narrower white-to-buff bands. The tip is edged in a thin white terminal band.

Pennaceous through most of the vane with tightly interlocked barbs; plumulaceous (downy) at the base near the calamus for insulation.

Smooth, stiff, and somewhat glossy on the dorsal surface; designed for aerodynamic stability and resistance to wind pressure.

Bold, high-contrast black-and-white banding and white tip; the bands are more numerous and narrower than those of a Broad-winged Hawk.

Deciduous and mixed forests, often near water sources such as rivers, swamps, and wooded wetlands.

Common throughout the Eastern United States and along the coast of California into Mexico; eastern populations are partially migratory.

Apex predator of small mammals, amphibians, and reptiles; serves as an important indicator of forest and wetland ecosystem health.

Broad-winged Hawk (fewer, wider white bands on tail) and Cooper's Hawk (grayer tones, different banding proportions).

One of the most vocal hawks, often heard giving its 'kee-aah' call long before it is seen. Often mimics the call of the Blue Jay (or vice versa).

Good condition; slight fraying at the edges suggest it may be a naturally molted feather from the summer molt cycle.