Broad Winged Hawk from Nestling to Almost Grown

Broad Winged Hawk Migration is Coming..
Grow up little hawk!

This is the growth of a wonderful Broad Winged Hawk from nestling to fledgling to almost grown enough to be set free. These birds have to grow up in a hurry.

The first photo is from July 2, 2011. This little hawk was nestless and was cared for in a nest made of pine needles in a suitable basket. Notice the downy covering of the baby bird.

July 7, 2011 arrived and the Broad Winged Hawk looks like a gangly adolescent. Actually, the bird was brought in from special home care to the rehabilitation center for raptors and provided the pine needle nest. When a bird leaves the nest it is called a fledgling. This one was a little young for that but left the nest anyway.

July 16, 2011 arrived and the hawk has changed a lot. Do you think so? Click the photo to see the larger version and look for what remains of the downy feathers.

July 21, 2011 came and the hawk is just at full sized. The bird will lose that last tiny bit of down, perhaps gain weight and feather out a little more. Note the eyes:  The eyes are the color for a juvenile and some time will pass for the color to change to the rich eye color of the adult.  The photos below were also taken on July 21, 2011.

The hawk is on a schedule to South America and will need to mature before migration time arrives. Not having been raised by its natural mother and father, it is good that  this hawk will likely join others sometime during the long migration flight.


When fall and winter are here in North America, the new hawks join older ones to migrate. Broad Winged Hawks will migrate to northern South America, a flight recorded by satellite of selected hawks to be 4,350 miles!* That is a long flight. This hawk is typical of the Broad Winged, solid, medium sized and beautiful. Long before migration time, this bird will have been released and honed its flight and hunting skills in nature, living as it should in the wild. Then migration comes and the hawks know what to do and where to go. While some birds migrate alone, Broad Winged Hawks gather in large groups called “kettles” and along the migration route may be seen in groups of 100's or many more spread out on the sky as they fly by to their new home.  When the seasons change, the hawks will return to North America to nest and raise a new family.



These stocky hawks are in the soaring family called buteo. However, they often hunt from the canopy of the forest, able to dive down through the trees to find a dinner of amphibians, large insects, small mammals and sometimes a small bird.




To hear their voice, visit the *Cornell Lab of Ornithology at this link:                          Cornell Ornithology, Broad Winged Hawk


July 29...Special Announcement

Broad Winged Hawk Released On July 29, 2011

And Is Now Living In The Wild

I apologize for not having good photos of the young Broad Winged Hawk flying to freedom. Here is a photo of the bird just prior to the flight. Lighting was not bright enough to use a quick shutter speed to stop the blur of the wings and the flight. When the hawk flew, my positioning also proved not the best. Every released bird does fly away but in different paths and directions. This Broad Winged Hawk stayed almost a minute looking at the surroundings.  Remember, for the young bird this is a first time into freedom. It does not know what to expect and is not fully aware where it's nature will lead. The glove raised and suddenly the Broad Winged flew, quite quick, low and away from me immediately to behind a tree line. 

The hawk was released in the arboretum operated by The University of Tennessee in the eastern part of the state. The Arboretum is within the 2,260 acre Oak Ridge Forest and there is room enough for these birds within the nature site. In the background is Kevin Hoyt, appointed on July 5, 2011 as new director for the facility. Will the young hawk stay in this forest? We really do not know but both the hawk and the forest will be well served it if does.  A link is here for the UT Arboretum:          Arboretum Release Area

HOW TO KNOW THE BIRD IS READY TO BE RELEASED--

First of all, the hawk must be old enough and well able to fly. This broad winged hawk spent the last 8 days in the larger enclosure which allows flight room.  The bird is given a live diet similar to what it would hunt in the wild.  Like owls, hawks also spit out  pellets of indigestible items and the pellets are examined to see what has been eaten.  Flight and energy levels are also observed and health is evaluated.  When ready to go, the birds can become quite active and if held too long when ready the feathers may be broken or damaged from eager flying in an enclosure.  This Broad Winged Hawk was in perfect condition for release.  Naturally, as with a bird from then nest, juvenile birds will develop wing strength and improve hunting skills while in the natural environment.  It is exciting to see a bird fly to freedom!  I always pray for it to survive well and learn to cope in nature quickly.