Monthly Archives: March 2023

Another early Spring migrant, Killdeer have returned to Michigan for purposes of breeding.  This common plover is the shorebird that is most associated with our neighborhoods and can be found in fields, playgrounds and golf courses. They are a shorter distance migrant as their range map shows; hence, the early return.

Hearing their call overhead as they fly, their name-sake “Kill-deer, kill-deer”, brings an uplifting feeling to me.  This bird has made the journey successfully and hopes to find a suitable place to nest.  Nesting for killdeer is a very plain affair – a simple scrape to lay the eggs in, with the male bowing forward and puffing his chest out, scraping backwards with his feet as the female watches.  If he meets her approval, she will take his place and scrape a little herself.  Mating then occurs.  Once the eggs are laid, Killdeer may add rocks, bits of shell or sticks to the nest area.

In an attempt to keep the nest safe, Killdeer will engage in a broken-wing display, fanning their rusty colored tail feathers and walking as if they are injured in an attempt to make themselves look like easy prey and pull attention away from the nest.

The eggs are well camouflaged as you can see in this photo that shows adult, young and eggs.

The young killdeer are altricial when born, defined as able to walk and covered with fuzzy down.  They immediately begin to follow their parents who will show them how to find food, consisting primarily of invertebrates including worms, snails, grasshopper, beetles, and aquatic insect larvae.

Educating those who are able to make the decision not to spray pesticides on the fields and lawns where these birds find their food would be a great way to save this bird from harms’ way.

Photo credits to Bill Creteau, Jerry Jourdan and Cornell Lab of Ornithology.

Did you know that Michigan holds the nationwide record for the most Red-tailed Hawks seen at one observation area east of the Mississippi River?  In 2019, a total of 22,420 Red-tailed Hawks were counted at the Mackinac Straits Raptor Watch.

Locally, we have a pair that can frequently be seen on the lamp posts along I-94, most commonly from Moross to Eleven Mile Road.  Why would Red-tailed Hawks be drawn to the side of an expressway?   The trash that is discarded by vehicles draws mice and rats to the area and those rodents are food for the hawks.  Sitting and observing is one of the ways that a Red-tail locates food, using its excellent vision to see movement below.  Unfortunately, car collisions can be the end result.

This hawk is from the family known as Buteos, stocky hawks with tail and wings about the same length when perched, known for soaring and perching in their pursuit of food.  The average size of a Red-tailed Hawk is 19” tall with a wingspan of 49” and weighing 2.4 pounds, with dark colors on the back, a red tail in the mature birds, a light-colored chest with a belly band of dark streaks.

Red-tailed Hawks feed on squirrels, rabbits, mice, rats, voles and snakes.  Prey is killed with the sharply taloned feet of the Red-tailed, the beak is used for ripping apart the prey for eating.  My most memorable sighting of a Red-tailed eating was watching it remove the hair from a squirrel’s tail, clip the tail from the body and then slurping it down in one piece.

The habitat that Red-tails prefer are open field with trees on the perimeter so that they can perch to look for prey and also use the trees for nesting.  This is why we find them most frequently at the Country Club of Detroit, Ghesquire Park, The Ford House and Lochmoor Club, where I often see them sitting on top of the poles near the driving range.  Nests of the monogamous pairs have been seen at all those locations.

Courting Red-tailed Hawks put on a display in which they soar in wide circles at a great height. The male will dive steeply, and then shoot up again at an angle nearly as steep. After several of these swoops he approaches the female from above, extends his legs, and touches her briefly.

Nests are tall piles of dry sticks up to 6.5 feet high and 3 feet across. The inner cup is lined with bark strips, fresh foliage, and dry vegetation. Construction takes 4-7 days.  Incubation of the typical 2-3 eggs lasts 28-35 days with the female doing most of the incubating while the male brings her food. It takes about 45 days from the time of hatching before the young leave their nest, but they continue to rely upon their parents for food for another eight weeks after they fledge.

One of the most famous attributes of the Red-tailed Hawk is their call, a shrill, raspy, descending two-note whistle “rEEE-ehhhhr”.  Many times it is used in movies as the call of an Eagle that is being seen, an amusing misappropriation.

A pair of Red-tailed Hawks was recently sighted over the Moross and Mack area, defending their territory by attacking a Bald Eagle that was in their airspace.  To view a video of these birds, check out the Facebook page of Wild Birds Unlimited, Grosse Pointe Woods.

Have fun with your own observations of this common yet very special raptor we are so fortunate to have among us.