Broad-winged Hawk – 4/21/26

Observer: Paul Lauenstein

Obervation Date: 4/21/26

Observation Time: 8:10 a.m.

Observation Location: Moose Hill Audubon Wildlife Sanctuary

Common Name: Broad-winged hawk

Scientific Name: Buteo platypterus

Comments: A small, stocky raptor with black-and-white bands on the tail, the Broad-winged Hawk is a bird of the forest interior and can be hard to see during the nesting season. Its call is a piercing, two-parted whistle. Its relatively small size and broad wings enable the broad-winged hawk to maneuver through the branches in pursuit of prey.

I used my Merlin app to hear its high-pitched cry and then followed the sound into the woods to find it high in a dead tree and get a photo of it.

One of the greatest spectacles of migration is a swirling flock of Broad-winged Hawks on their way to South America. Also known as “kettles,” flocks can contain thousands of circling birds that evoke a vast cauldron being stirred with an invisible spoon.

More Information: All About Birds