Harris Hawk

SCIENTIFIC NAME: Parabuteo unicinctus

The Harris' hawk is a large, long-tailed, broad-winged hawk about 18 inches long with a wingspan of 43 inches. It has a chocolate-brown head and neck and a short, dark, hooked beak with a yellow cere. The tail is dark (black in adult birds) with a white base and terminal band.

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RANGE:

Common in the southwestern United States and most of South America.

HABITAT:

Sparse woodland or semi-desert.

NESTING:

They build a simple platform nest of sticks, twigs, weeds, and roots, lined with moss or a similar material. The nest is rarely more than 30 feet above the ground. The lay two to four eggs. Incubation is 33 to 36 days.

FEEDING HABITS:

Mainly small to medium-sized rodents. It is also known to take birds - often in flight - lizards, insects, and mammals up to the size of a full-grown rabbit. There is some evidence that it also eats carrion when prey is in short supply.