How to Identify a Broad-Winged Hawk

What Does a Broad-Winged Hawk Look Like?

Courtesy Sheryl Fleming

“I saw this hawk in the woods near my house. What hawk species is it?” asks reader Sheryl Fleming of Hoffmeister, New York.

Birding experts Kenn and Kimberly Kaufman say, “It’s a special treat to get a good look at this bird. The brown back and the wide black and white bands across the tail mark this as an adult broad-winged hawk.”

These compact buteos are approximately the size of a crow, measuring 16 inches long with a 34 inch wingspan. Look for dark blotches on the white chest and pale colored wings with dark tips.

Check out these essential hawk identification tips for birders.

Range and Habitat

Courtesy Reseph Keiderling

Kenn and Kimberly say, “Unlike the red-tailed hawks that can be seen in open country and along roadsides all year, broad-winged hawks are forest birds. They’re often hard to approach.

In summer, they live in wooded regions of the eastern United States and Canada, mostly east of the Rockies. In fall, they migrate to the tropics, going as far south as South America.”

Juvenile Birds

Courtesy Anne Clump

Immature birds have a streaked chest and a more finely barred tail.

Diet

These birds prey on small mammals such as chipmunks, frogs and lizards, small birds, and large insects. Learn more about the foods hawks eat.

Call and Sounds

Bird sounds courtesy of the Cornell Lab of Ornithology

This forest-loving buteo is quiet, almost sedentary in behavior. But, in the breeding season, the pairs are conspicuous as they soar overhead, whistling p’ deeee, p’ deeee.

Migration

Rob Ripma

These hawks are most often encountered during massive migration movements, sometimes with thousands flying together. These huge groups soar as one in tight circles. More than 1 million broad-winged hawks migrate through Veracruz, Mexico, during the fall in what is known as the River of Raptors.

About the Experts

Kenn and Kimberly Kaufman are the official bird experts for Birds & Blooms. They are the creators of the Kaufman Field Guide series and they lead birding trips all over the world.

Sources

• National Audubon Society – broad-winged hawk
• All About Birds – broad-winged hawk