I watched this beautiful red-shoulder hawk do this 3 times before flying away. It would sit about 4 meters off the ground in a pine tree, dive down into the grass, and start plowing through the soil with its talons, unearthing mole crickets and then swallowing them whole. The entire process still has me scratching my head. The mole crickets are underground. How in the world is this bird finding them? By sound? If so, that’s some super hearing. If not sound, what? Is there just something this inc

Red-shouldered Hawks hunt from perches below the forest canopy or at the edge of a water body, searching silently for prey. You may have heard that owls can turn their heads all the way around, up to 270 degrees, but it may surprise you that hawks have a similar ability. Both hawks and owls have fixed eyes, so they need to move their heads to see. They have 14 neck vertebrae (twice the amount that humans have) which allows them to twist their necks much farther than we can, enhancing their view.

Red-shouldered Hawks | Srikanth Boga Photography

Red-shouldered Hawks in action | Srikanth Boga Photography

Sound on for smooth grooves... Red-shouldered hawks can be a common sight in urban and suburban woods where they prefer to nest. Unlike the slightly larger and also abundant red-tailed hawk, their relatively short wings are built for maneuvering through trees. One might even consider them "feeder birds", since they often prey upon songbirds that congregate around human food sources like bird feeders. Learn more at our red-shouldered hawk species profile: http://bit.ly/3fDlG2F | NC Wildlife Resou