Forest Hawks A female northern goshawk on her nest
Story and photos by Sco Rashid Director of CARRI Most everyone has seen red-tailed hawks soaring high over open meadows, or American kestrels perched on a power line along the roadside. These raptors are commonly seen in the open and easily observed as they are hun ng in the open meadows. However, there is a group of raptors that are a bit more difficult to observe: the accipiters. Accipiters are forest-dwelling raptors with short rounded wings and long tails. Having short wings and long tails enables these birds to maneuver rapidly through the thick forests when chasing poten al prey. The largest of the accipiters, northern goshawks are raven-sized birds that prefer old-growth forests for nes ng and raising their young. These raptors live far within the forests of Colorado, usually above 8000 feet. Within Rocky Mountain Na onal Park (RMNP) these hawks preferred habitat contains a mixture of aspen, Douglas fir, ponderosa, and lodgepole pines and frequently has an ac ve water source. Northern goshawks in and around RMNP seem to prefer nes ng in live aspens, but will also construct their nests in lodgepole pine and Douglas-fir. Northern goshawks seem to prefer nes ng in live trees because the canopy above the nest gives some protec on from
A fledgling northern goshawk.
