# Red-shouldered Hawk

*Buteo lineatus*

Red-shouldered Hawks are creatures of habit, often returning to the same nesting territory for many consecutive years.

- **Taxonomy:** Animalia › Chordata › Aves › Accipitriformes › Accipitridae › Buteo
- **IUCN Red List status:** Least Concern
- **Population trend:** increasing
- **Biome:** forest
- **Habitat:** Deciduous and mixed forests, often near rivers, swamps, and wetlands.
- **Diet:** Small mammals, amphibians (especially frogs), reptiles (snakes), and occasionally large insects.
- **Range:** Eastern North America, California, Mexico
- **Size:** Length: 17-24 in; Wingspan: 37-43 in; Weight: 1.1-1.9 lbs
- **Lifespan:** 10-20 years
- **Active:** diurnal
- **Threats:** Habitat loss due to suburban sprawl, forest fragmentation, and secondary poisoning from rodenticides.
- **Safe to approach?:** Harmless to humans but highly defensive near nests. Maintain a distance of at least 50 feet. If the bird begins screaming or diving, calmly leave the area. In the unlikely event of a scratch from talons, wash the area thoroughly with soap and water and seek medical advice if signs of infection appear.

## About

The red-shouldered hawk ( Buteo lineatus ) is a medium-sized hawk. Its breeding range spans eastern North America and along the coast of California and northern to northeastern-central Mexico. Red-shouldered hawks are permanent residents throughout most of their range, though northern birds do migrate, mostly to central Mexico. The main conservation threat to the widespread species is deforestation.

## Sources

- Plate: https://gaia-dex.com/species/c9aef170-a2d7-4996-ae2a-46dc97ef0d22
- iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/5206
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buteo lineatus
- Conservation status: IUCN Red List category, as recorded by Gaia-Dex
- Photo: https://inaturalist-open-data.s3.amazonaws.com/photos/60982682/medium.jpg (Jonathan Eisen, CC-BY, via iNaturalist)

Habitat, diet, size and similar notes are AI-written summaries; check them against the linked sources before relying on them.