Juvenile Red-tailed Hawks in ponderosa pine
Being true generalists when it comes to breeding habitat, they nest in deciduous forests, shrublands, grasslands, rural areas and coniferous woodlands here in Colorado as well as on cliffs like the birds I have posted on below. As I was driving through a ponderosa pine woodland in southeast Fremont Co, I saw two juvenile Red-tailed Hawks high up in a ponderosa tree.
In the upper pic it looks like the hawk has it's head screwed on backwards, but it's just it's youthful flexibility that allowed it to look over it's shoulder at me as it practically turned it's head 180 degrees. The hawk looks more natural in the lower pic as it is just looking over it's shoulder.
I couldn't see a nest in the tree they were perched in but they could not have come far as they were having trouble keeping their balance as they moved about the tree.
Labels: Juv.Red-tailedHawk, San Isabel NF