The Red-tailed Hawk is a large, broad-winged hawk often seen soaring over clearings, ridges and highways around Mt. Hood, or perched on a pole or snag watching the ground. Adults have a rusty orange-red tail with a thin dark band near the tip; seen from below, the tail looks pale.
Red-tails hunt mostly from a high perch, dropping onto voles, rats, rabbits and ground squirrels, and they also take snakes and some birds. Pairs court by soaring together in high circles and calling loudly, and they build bulky stick nests high in tall trees. The call is a hoarse, high scream that drops in pitch.
Plumage varies a lot in the West. Most birds are light below with a band of dark streaks across the belly, but some are rich rust-brown or nearly black. Young birds have brown tails with dark bars, so a hawk without a red tail can still be a red-tail. From behind, a perched bird often shows a pale V of mottling across its back.
Red-tailed Hawks live in nearly every habitat and at every elevation in Oregon, but they are uncommon in dense forest. Look for them where the trees open up: burns, meadows, clearcuts, farmland and roadsides.
How to identify it
A big, stocky hawk with fairly broad wings. Adults usually show a rusty red tail above, a pale chest and a streaky dark band across the belly. In flight, the leading edge of the inner wing looks dark, and perched birds often show a pale V of mottling across the back. Juveniles have brown, barred tails.
Look-alikes
Juveniles and dark-colored birds are the ones most often confused with other large hawks. Check for the belly band, the dark leading edge of the inner wing and the pale V on the back of a perched bird.
Habitat
Open country and forest edges, meadows, clearings, burns, roadsides and farmland, anywhere with high perches and open hunting ground. Found year-round throughout Oregon at all elevations, but uncommon in dense forest.
Sightings in the forest
100 research-grade sightings in Mt. Hood National Forest on iNaturalist, most recently on October 20, 2026. See them on iNaturalist →