GRAY HAWK

(Buteo plagiatus)

eBird gives this description of the Gray Hawk:  Compact raptor. Adults distinctive, all pale gray with thin white bars on underparts. Tail banded black and white. Juvenile is brown and streaky. Juveniles are similar to juvenile Broad-winged and Red-shouldered Hawks, but have bolder face pattern, paler underwings, and a small white patch at the base of the uppertail. Found in shrubby riparian woodland. Usually seen singly.  All About Birds provides this additional descriptive information:  A tropical species that barely crosses the border into Arizona and Texas, the Gray Hawk is an elegant, raincloud-gray raptor with neatly barred underparts. They spend their days gracefully soaring over open areas or perched in cottonwoods, willows, and mesquites along lowland streams. They patiently watch for lizards, then catch them with a swift dart toward the ground. Gray Hawks are small for a hawk in the genus Buteo, and their longish tails and flap-and-glide flight style can make them resemble accipiters.

I watched a pair of Gray Hawks on the morning of June 22, 2020, at the Sabal Palms Sanctuary south of Brownsville, Texas.  As I began to walk the trails that morning, I soon heard the distinctive cry of this hawk.  Most of the trails are covered in a dense canopy, but as I reached the Wetland Bridge portion of the Resaca Loop Trail, things opened up and I spotted a Gray Hawk, perched high on a dead tree.  I got a good look at him and noticed he was banded on both legs.  In short order, he was joined by another Gray Hawk that did not have bands.  I watched these birds for about 25 minutes and was able to get some good photographs of these magnificent birds.  I hope you enjoy them!