Saturday, June 18, 2016

Hawk at 3 o'clock


Photo by Chuck Cooper

Today at 3 o'clock at Ijams, meet and greet the Ijams' adopted red-tailed hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) named Tiger. She has an injured wing (her left, but to your right), so she is only partial flighted. 

Redtails are the largest species of hawk found in the Tennessee Valley. They hunt over open grassland, meadows and, oddly, along the medians of interstates. Known incorrectly as "chicken hawks," they rarely go after such prey since redtails only weight three pounds. They much prefer a three or four ounce mouse.

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