Body size: 36" [91.4 cm] - Wingspread: 74" [188.0 cm] females 20% larger than males
- Hawk & Eagle
This eagle prefers to live and nest near rivers, lakes, wet prairies where it can
find feeding areas, diurnal (daytime) perches, and night roosts. Its diet consists
of fish swimming at the water's surface, small mammals, waterfowl, wading birds,
and carrion (dead animals). Bald eagles are more likely to be seen near Cochiti
Lake than in the Cerrillos Hills, but you may spot one in the vicinity of the
Galisteo River.
Adults (4 to 5 years and older) are identified by their white head and tail,
solid brown body, and a large, curved, yellow bill.
Juveniles have blotchy patches of white on their undersides and tail.
Bald eagles live up to 30 years in the wild.
The US Fish and Wildlife Service lists the bald eagle as threatened in New Mexico
(and all but three of the lower 48 states), but there are healthy populations of
these eagles in Canada and Alaska.
One of the two great eagles [see Golden Eagle below] of Puebloan lore.
Bald eagle feathers are regarded as the best for fletching arrows.
In Keresan culture this is the bird, along with the Golden Eagle, that is associated
with ZENITH. which is the light yellow direction. In the depths of winter zenith
may be perceived as the "below" direction.
(See Roadrunner for comparison.)
In Tewa culture this bird, tse, the Chieftan Bird, is
associated with NORTH, which is the blue direction.
Four kinds of eagles are the vanguard for summer in the Battle of the Seasons;
the Bald Eagle, the Osprey, the Golden Eagle, and the Red-tailed Hawk.
Before they reach maturity in their third year Bald eagles have white-blotched
dark feathers, and are referred to as Black Eagles (along with the common black
hawk.)
The Cooper's is a medium-sized hawk. Adults have a gray-blue back, white undersides,
and marked with rufous bars. The head has a black cap, and there are three black
bands on the tail, which has a rounded shape. It is the rounded shape of the tail
and the slightly larger size that distinguishes the Cooper's hawk from the
sharp-shinned hawk.
Males and females look the same, with the female about 30% larger. Immature birds
are brown above and vertically streaked with brown below.
The Cooper's hawk is a predator of birds, but it also feeds on mammals,
particularly squirrels and chipmunks.
The Ferruginous is the largest hawk in North America. It is a heavy, thick-set
bird with broad powerful wings. Adult females may be up to one-and-a-half times
larger than the males. They may live 15 to 20 years.
The name "ferruginous" comes from the Latin word ferrugo,
meaning rust, for their rusty brown coloration.
They prefer open grasslands where they hunt their primary prey, prairie dogs, and
are consequently not normal inhabitants of the Hills.
LS reports: species recorded near SR-14 (San Marcos Arroyo & north 8 miles.)
MR reports: saw this bird in the hills on two occasions winter 2002-03.
Adult golden eagles are usually dark brown, with a dark-tipped tail that is either
darkly barred or spotted. Its beak is as long as its head.
Juveniles begin with a largely whitish coloration, and over the first three to four
years that white coloration disappears.
The Golden Eagle feeds mainly on ground squirrels, hares, foxes, skunks, cats,
grouse, meadowlarks, tortoises, snakesbirds, and owls. Eagles also feed on carrion.
They may live fifteen to twenty years.
One of the two great eagles [see Bald Eagle above] of Puebloan
lore, the Golden Eagle flies beyond the range of human sight to disappear into
the hole in the stone vault of the sky.
In Keresan culture this is the bird, along with the Bald Eagle, that is associated
with ZENITH, which is the light yellow direction. In the depths of winter zenith
may be perceived as the "below" direction. (See Roadrunner
for comparison.)
In Tewa culture this bird, tse, is associated with NORTH,
which is the blue direction.
Four kinds of eagles are said to be the vanguard for summer in the Battle of the
Seasons; the Bald Eagle, the Osprey, the Golden Eagle, and the Red-tailed Hawk.
Northern Harrier, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk - ALL YEAR
Cooper Hawk - TRANSIENT & SUMMER (?)
Sighted at the Ortiz Mountains Educational Preserve (an isolated high
mountain group -- 7,000 to 9,000 feet elevation -- eight miles south of Cerrillos.)
Golden Eagle - summer '02
Northern Harrier, Sharp-shinned, Cooper's, Red-tailed, Golden eagle - as of '04
This is a medium-sized, long-winged, long-tailed hawk. Its rounded wings can
appear pointed while gliding. It has a white rump, a flat face with owl-like
facial disk, a short, dark, hooked beak, and narrow dark bars on its tail. It
often courses low over marshes and fields on wings held in a pronounced V position
[dihedral].
Head, back, wings dark brown; underparts light rufous and white; lower chest may
have band of heavy brown streaks; tail pale orange below, rufous above. From
below, underwing mainly white with dark leading edge; black crescent beyond wrist.
Perches conspicuously in trees along highways.
In Tewa culture this bird, qwaempi, is associated with SOUTH,
which is the red direction. The same association is also made for the macaw,
tansi. The Red-tailed hawk is known as the Red Eagle.
Four kinds of eagles are said to be the vanguard for summer in the Battle of the
Seasons; the Bald Eagle, the Osprey, the Golden Eagle, and the Red-tailed Hawk.
This bird prefers the open country, areas without many trees and with great
visibility.
Rough-legged hawks can be whitish with extensive dark patterning to entirely black
with limited but distinctive whitish areas. In flight, adults appear essentially
whitish with heavy dark streaking showing distinctive dark patches on parts of
the wing, across the belly, and at the end of the tail.
LS reports: recorded during winter near SR-14 (San Marcos Arroyo & 8 miles north.)
Sharp-shinned hawks, affectionally known as "sharpies", are mainly stealth hunters.
They perch and wait for prey, or fly a low course and depend upon surprise to
flush their quarry. With long tails acting as a steering rudder, and short, broad
wings, a sharpie can turn quickly and rapidly accelerate after prey.
Sharpies are most often seen in the riparian zones; along canyon bottoms and
mountain streams.
Swainson's hawks are found along river valley corridors, usually nesting in trees,
and have occasionally been noted in the Cerrillos Hills.
The Swainson's is identified by hood-like brown feathering on the head that extends
part way down its chest. If you see it flying overhead you will note a wide,
dark-colored band on the trailing edge of the underside of its wings.
This hawk preys on a variety of small mammals, birds, reptiles. The Swainson's is
very tolerant of humans and adapts well to farm and ranchlands where prey is
abundant and bordering trees provide nesting sites.
The Swainson's hawk has the longest migrating distance of any North American bird
of prey -- as far as Argentina in South America.
LS reports: recorded near SR-14 (San Marcos Arroyo & north 8 miles.)
MR reports: sighted in Cerrillos Hills April 2003.
Sighted at the Leonora Curtin Wetland Preserve (a lush, well-watered
preserve 3 miles [4.8 kilometers] north of Cerro Bonanza, near La Ciénega.)
Northern Harrier, Sharp-shinned Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk - ALL YEAR
Cooper Hawk - TRANSIENT & SUMMER (?)
Sighted at the Ortiz Mountains Educational Preserve (an isolated high
mountain group -- 7,000 to 9,000 feet [2,133.6 to 2,743.2 meters] elevation --
eight miles [12.9 kilometers] south of Cerrillos.)
Golden Eagle - summer '02
Northern Harrier, Sharp-shinned, Cooper's, Red-tailed, Golden eagle - as of '04
This website is maintained by the Cerrillos
Hills Park Coalition
and is dedicated to the creation, enhancement and stewardship
of an historical, recreational, and cultural open space in
the
Cerrillos Hills, Santa Fe County, New Mexico, USA
