Hawks are undeniably skilled predators. With sharp beaks, powerful talons, and keen eyesight, these birds of prey can snatch prey easily and dispatch smaller animals without much effort.
Yes, Hawks are birds of prey and they do eat other birds as part of their diet. Depending on the species of hawk, they may feed on small birds such as sparrows, finches, and doves, as well as larger birds like pigeons and crows. They use their sharp talons and beaks to capture and kill their prey.
Key Takeaways From Do Hawks Eat Birds
Hawks eat meat and hunt small to medium-sized birds including doves, quail, and woodpeckers.
Hawks tend to pose a serious threat to many feeder and backyard birds.
Hawks don’t have a preference on what bird they want to eat, as long as the other bird is small enough for them to hunt and kill.
Do All Hawks Eat Birds?
Hawks are carnivorous birds which means they eat both live and dead animals (carrion). Their diet primarily consists of small birds. While all hawks hunt birds to some extent, the number of birds they target varies greatly depending on the species.
For example, Accipiters like the Cooper’s Hawks and Sharp-shinned Hawks prefer to hunt in forested areas where small songbirds live. These hawks have short, rounded wings and long tails.
On the other hand, Buteos such as the Swainson’s Hawks and Red-tailed Hawks are typically found in hunting grounds and open habitats such as grasslands or deserts, where the abundance of ground-dwelling prey allows for a more varied diet.
Most hawk species rely on hunting adult and young birds for food, though the specific type of bird varies from one hawk to the next.
Do Baby Hawks Eat Other Birds?
Yes, baby hawks (also called chicks) eat other smaller birds. Since they are still young and incapable of hunting prey on their own, they rely on their parents for sustenance, including the flesh of other birds. But as they grow older, baby hawks are occasionally given other prey items if they are easy to handle.
What Kind of Birds Do Hawks Eat?
Hawks have been observed hunting a wide range of bird species. They are typically larger than the birds they prey on, and they use their keen eyesight to spot particularly vulnerable birds from a distance. They can also easily dispatch their prey with lethal precision using their powerful beaks and talons.
Here are the birds that hawks eat:
Backyard Birds
Hawks are among the most common natural predators of garden birds, even in suburban backyards. Small birds such as finches, sparrows and robins, along with their eggs and young, are particularly vulnerable to hawks.
As these birds congregate near backyard bird feeders, the hawk will watch them closely while perched on a nearby tree and snatch them swiftly if a window of opportunity opens. Nesting in treetops or on the ground in open areas or tall grasses can also increase the risk of a hawk attack.
If you have feeder birds in your backyard make sure to take the necessary steps to protect smaller birds from a visiting hawk.
Choose cage feeders or build a cage around your existing feeders to allow small birds to access the feeder while keeping larger birds out.
Avoid ground feeding and low feeders.
Survey the surrounding area of your feeders and remove any hawk vantage points from tall trees.
Clean your backyard feeders and remove uneaten food that can potentially attract hawks’ other prey such as various insects and small mammals like prairie dogs and other small rodents.
Provide your garden birds with a quick escape route by putting your feeders near a house with large shrubs.
Remove feeders from your backyard if hawk visits to your yard remain a regular occurrence. The hawk will eventually look for another hunting ground or hunting area if it can’t hunt spot small prey in your backyard.
Songbirds
Hawks kill and eat songbirds. Due to their small size, abundance, and habit of congregating in large numbers, songbirds are common prey for many different types of hawks. These birds are easy targets for hawks, whether songbirds belong to migrating flocks or dense urban populations.
Hawks feed primarily on small birds such as doves, jays, thrushes and wood warblers. In fact, it appears that no songbird is safe from hawks.
Poultry
Hawks are known to be interested in poultry birds. In fact, poultry typically makes up a large percentage of a hawk’s diet. Poultry birds have been bred over time to produce more meat and eggs than their wild counterparts, which makes them attractive to many raptors, including Cooper’s hawk (also called Chicken Hawk) and the American kestrel.
While some domesticated birds like turkeys and geese are too large for most hawks to hunt alone, they are often willing to hunt smaller birds like chicks or ducklings.
Some larger hawks may hunt poultry birds in groups, taking advantage of their numbers to catch prey that would otherwise elude them.
Why Do Hawks Eat Other Small Birds?
Hawks are powerful and agile predators, which gives them a competitive advantage over other small birds. These birds can dive and swoop with unmatched speed, giving them the ability to catch their unsuspecting prey before it can escape.
Hawks have razor-sharp talons and hooked beaks that allow them to easily tear into their prey and feast on the meat inside.
Compared to hawks, smaller birds lack these qualities. Smaller birds don’t have the speed and strength to match hawks. Furthermore, they have flimsy feathers that do little to protect them from a hawk’s sharp talons or beak.
When a hawk attacks, these birds will fly into windows and a stunned bird becomes an easy meal. As a result, they often fall prey to many raptors, not just hawks.
FAQs on Hawk Attacks on Small Birds
Do Hawks Eat Hummingbirds?
Hummingbirds are not particularly appealing to hawks in general. These small and agile birds do not provide enough food for a large hawk to make an effort. That is not to say that hawks never hunt or consume them. When food is scarce and other options, such as rodents or smaller birds, have been exhausted, a hungry hawk may turn to hummingbirds as a last-resort meal.
Furthermore, while hawks are not actively hunting hummingbirds to eat them, their presence can still be dangerous to these birds.
Hummingbirds are fiercely territorial and often defend their breeding grounds aggressively against other bird species, including hawks. Even if a hawk comes across a solitary hummingbird, the hummingbird may attack first and fend off its would-be predator.
Do Hawks Eat Blue Jays?
Yes, many species of hawks, such as the red-tailed hawk, sharp-shinned hawk, and Cooper’s hawk, actively hunt adult bluejays and their young.
Do Hawks Eat Pigeons?
Yes, hawks eat pigeons. Pigeons are often defenseless and vulnerable to attacks from a particularly aggressive hawk.
Do Hawks Eat Doves?
Like all the other birds, mourning doves are easy prey to high-soaring hawks and other fast-moving raptor.
