![]() ![]() Osprey’s hunt by swooping in feet-first to grab fish out of water. Usually these raptors nest in solitary trees in open marshland. Ospreys only eat fish, so like bald eagles, you will find them near bodies of water. They commonly live in pastures where they hover over their prey with fast wing beats - kind of like a helicopter. Males have colorful bluish feathers and as well as bright reddish-orange plumage underneath. ![]() Peregrine falcons nest up high on large cliffs.Īmerican kestrel: Weighing in at four ounces and only nine inches tall, these are the smallest North American raptors. Peregrine falcon: These raptors own the title of the fastest animal world! Their large malars (the things that look like sideburns) make them look like they wear a helmet. Golden eagles get their name thanks to their golden feathers along their neck. They eat mainly mammals, like squirrels and rabbits, so they usually don’t live in the same area as bald eagles. Golden eagle: These beautiful raptors nest on cliffs. These raptors eat mostly fish, so you will find them near bodies of water. They also have dark bellies against their white feathers.īald eagle: This majestic bird has a brown body and white tail/head. The best way to identify red-tailed hawks is to look for a “dash” along their front and a “comma” along their outer sides as they soar above you. Although the adult raptors have red tails (hence the name), juvenile red-tailed hawks have brown tails so you cannot distinguish them just by that feature. Red-tailed hawk: This is the most common hawk found in almost every habitat. Roughly the size of blue jays, they have rounded heads, straight tail feathers, and very skinny “shins” - hence the name.Ĭooper’s hawk: Like we said above, they have the same coloring as sharp-shinned hawks, but these raptors are more the size of a crow, with a flat head and rounded tail feathers. Sharpies usually are bluish gray with barred white-and-orange plumage (feathers) underneath. Sharp-shinned hawk: Known as “sharpies” in the bird world, they look exactly like a Cooper’s hawk only smaller. Heads up - this isn’t an exhaustive list of North American raptors, but it will give you enough knowledge to impress your kids and friends on your next hike. But, let's include them as raptors for the sake of this post because they’re both really interesting. No one officially agrees on whether certain groups like owls and vultures are actually raptors.
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