The Red-Shouldered Hawk (Buteo lineatus) is a medium-sized raptor recognized for its striking appearance and distinctive call. This forest-dwelling hawk is characterized by its barred reddish-peachy underparts and a long, dark tail strongly banded with white. Primarily found across eastern North America and a separate population along the California coast, this species is often associated with wet, forested habitats. It functions as a significant diurnal predator, helping to manage populations of small vertebrates.
The Core Diet: Amphibians and Reptiles
The Red-Shouldered Hawk exhibits a notably high reliance on cold-blooded prey compared to many other hawks of the Buteo genus. Amphibians, such as frogs, toads, and salamanders, constitute a substantial portion of the hawk’s diet, especially during the breeding season. This preference links directly to the hawk’s favored habitat near streams, swamps, and other wetlands where these prey items are abundant.
The hawk also frequently consumes reptiles, including smaller snakes and lizards. Studies have documented the regular consumption of non-venomous snakes by these raptors across their range. In certain southern regions, aquatic crustaceans like crayfish become an important food source.
Beyond their primary focus on amphibians and reptiles, the Red-Shouldered Hawk is an opportunistic hunter that supplements its diet with small mammals. These mammals typically include voles, shrews, mice, and chipmunks, which are captured while moving through the forest floor litter. They will also occasionally take small birds, fish, and large insects like grasshoppers and beetles.
Hunting Methods and Preferred Foraging Habitat
The Red-Shouldered Hawk’s foraging strategy is highly adapted to the dense, wet woodlands it inhabits, favoring a sit-and-wait technique over open-air pursuit. The primary method is the “perch and wait” technique, where the hawk scans the forest floor from a low perch, typically 6 to 15 feet above the ground. This allows the hawk to conserve energy while searching for the subtle movements of ground-dwelling and semi-aquatic prey.
Once prey is detected, the hawk drops directly onto it from the perch, using its sharp talons to secure the meal. The hawk possesses binocular vision, which provides excellent depth perception, making it a precise hunter in the shaded understory. They are also known to use hearing to locate prey rustling in the leaf litter, an adaptation useful in the cluttered environment of a mature forest.
The preferred foraging habitat consists of mature deciduous or mixed forests, particularly bottomland hardwood stands and flooded swamps. The hawk’s ability to fly with a quick flap-and-glide motion allows it to maneuver effectively through the forest canopy, contrasting with the high-soaring hunt of other Buteo species.
Seasonal and Regional Dietary Flexibility
The Red-Shouldered Hawk’s diet shows considerable flexibility, adapting to the availability of prey across seasons and geographic locations. During the warmer months, cold-blooded vertebrates like frogs and snakes are easily accessible, forming the bulk of the diet in many areas. This pattern shifts dramatically with the onset of colder weather, when amphibians and reptiles become scarce due to hibernation.
In northern latitudes during winter, the hawk must transition its focus to warm-blooded prey that remain active, such as small mammals and birds. This seasonal change demonstrates the hawk’s opportunistic nature, capitalizing on whatever food source is most reliably available. For instance, some individuals have been observed preying on birds at feeders when natural prey is limited.
Regional variations also play a significant role in the hawk’s specific food choices. Studies comparing diets have found that hawks in more northern latitudes consume significantly more mammalian prey. Conversely, populations in southern states, like Florida and Texas, maintain a higher proportion of amphibians and reptiles in their diet year-round, reflecting the consistent availability of these species in warmer climates.