Swainson’s Hawk

Swainson’s Hawk
Buteo swainsoni

Swainson’s hawks are great voyagers. During migrations, they travel up to 11,000 miles between North and South America, while wintering in South America

Swainson’s Hawks belong to the Buteo genus, a group of hawks known for their broad wings and short tails. However, Swainson’s hawks are slimmer than many other buteos., with their long wings typically held in a shallow V when soaring.

Swainson’s Hawks are social raptors, often being found in groups outside the breeding season. You may see them soaring in a kettle of migrating birds; strung out on the ground, fence posts, and utility poles when foraging on grasshoppers; or chasing swarms of dragonflies during winter months in Argentina.

Swainson’s Hawks are a threatened species in California; we are rapidly losing their preferred habitat—open grasslands and agricultural areas.

Our male Swainson’s hawk, Odin, was found along a roadside in Modoc County in 1999, possibly hit by a car. His left eye was severely injured and had to be removed during treatment at our wildlife hospital. With only one eye, he cannot effectively hunt and would not survive in the wild. He joined our ambassador team in 2000.

Although missing an eye, one of Odin’s favorite activities is getting crickets that get tossed to him. He’s currently also learning how to fly to and from the glove for exercise.

Though most Swainson’s Hawks are lighter in color, Lindsay acquired Valkyrie in 2017, who is darker in color than most Swainson’s, which is known as ‘dark morph.”

Before she was an ambassador, she was a patient in the Lindsay Wildlife Hospital where first arrived as a fledgling in July with injuries in both eyes after falling out of her nest. While her left eye healed well, her right eye developed a traumatic cataract. Without perfect sight in her right eye, she will be unable to effectively hunt and survive in the wild.

Valkyrie is a very unique and curious ambassador. She enjoys spending time with her keepers and engaging with training sessions. Due to the issues with her eyes, keepers have trained her to get a voluntary eye exam with an ophthalmoscope. This will allow keepers to help Valkyrie’s medical checks throughout her life. The best part is during each exam, she gets lots of treats!