Red-tailed Hawk & Red-shouldered Hawk

Raptors riding the thermal air currents as they rise up the slopes of the Moraine, are a graceful and common sight.

The Red-tailed Hawk is one of our most common hawks, recognizable by the distinctive rusty reddish feathers in its fanned tail. Its incredibly expansive range includes almost all of North America from arctic tree line to desert. While they might not always be seen, they are often heard, recognizable by their rasping 2-part descending screech.

The Red-shouldered Hawk although it looks similar to the Red-tailed Hawk in size and shape, is distinguished by its reddish shoulders and darkly banded tail. Requiring a well-forested landscape, the Red-shouldered Hawk has been relegated to a very small portion of Southern Ontario. The Red-shouldered Hawk may be seen in the densely forested parts of the Moraine such as Happy Valley forest.