It’s mid-December and you make another trip to the Lehigh Valley to continue Christmas shopping. The trees are bare after leaf drop and from winter’s bitter winds. Perched atop a few roadside trees, fence posts, light standards, and even billboards is the hawk most commonly seen and probably the one most of the Times News readers can identify. That is the red-tailed hawk.

“Redtails” breed in this area and most of those adults and their young remain to over-winter here. In addition to the local birds, our “redtail” numbers are bolstered by migrant “redtails” that have found this region and the Lehigh Valley much more hospitable than areas to our north. Generally southern Canada, New York state, and New England have much colder winter temperatures and most importantly, deeper snow cover. The snow cover and the time it blankets the ground generally send them searching for better areas to feed.

The red-tailed hawk is our largest regularly seen raptor. At 19 inches in size and with a 4-foot wingspan it’s hard to miss. This hawk, and broad-winged hawks (summer residents here) are buteos. They generally have broad wings and do quite a bit of soaring. Their hunting method is generally different than cooper’s hawks or sharp-shinned hawks that hide on a perch and then dart down onto a bird feeder or through the trees to snatch an unwary bird. “Redtails,” particularly in winter, find a perch that gives them a good view of a field, or so commonly, road side grassy areas that have been mowed.

This shorter vegetation allows them to more easily find their chief prey, the meadow vole. On windy days though, I’ve seen many red-tailed hawks “kiting.” This is when they face into the breeze and just seem to be “glued “ to a spot in the sky. If they spot their prey, they quickly drop almost straight down to pounce on an unsuspecting mouse.

Red-tailed hawks, like great horned owls, are not pals of our local crows. Sometimes I am unaware of either of these birds’ presence until I hear the crows’ raucous calling. The crows can be relentless making dive after dive trying to chase the raptors away. And, generally, they succeed and a “redtail” will eventually be tired of the dive bombing and racket and will fly off with a contingent of crows still trailing behind.

I now know why. This past autumn I reviewed photos from one of my game cameras (trail cam) and upon viewing it, I was able to observe a “red-tail” dive after and catch a crow. This explained why a “pile” of crow feathers was scattered near the camera. Remember, hawks will pluck and eat their prey, especially birds, while great horned owls will eat everything. Later the owls regurgitate a pellet of bones, fur or feathers.

Look for red-tailed hawks in your travels the next few months, even better, just get out there.

Test Your Outdoor Knowledge: True or False: A swamp or marsh are one in the same thing.

Dec. 24 Trivia Answer: The long-tailed weasel turns white in winter except for a dark tip of the tail. Since it is a small predator it too can be eaten by owls, etc. The dark tipped tail could cause a predator to attack the “non-lethal” part of the weasel giving it a chance to escape.

Email Barry Reed at breed71@gmail.com