SEQUOIA
Species: Buteo jamaicensis, Red-tailed Hawk • Hatch Year: Unknown • Sex: Male • Disability: Injury to wing and retina
Sequoia arrived at the AEF in early 2018. He had suffered injury to both a wing and eye that brought him to our rehabilitation center. Unfortunately, the retinal (eye) damage was severe, and Sequoia did not regain enough flight capability to be released. He became an educational ambassador after being deemed non-releasable.
Sequoia has always impressed the staff with his very calm personality. Even as a rehab bird, he was very relaxed with staff as they moved about his enclosure cleaning and providing food. He picked up on glove training very quickly and is now in training to do educational outreach programs.
ABOUT THIS SPECIES
Red-tailed hawks are commonly called ‘chicken hawks,’ but it’s a name they don’t deserve because they rarely eat chickens. They eat mostly rodents, but will also eat various mammals, reptiles, birds, and sometimes even venomous snakes. The first year of life is a daunting experience for young Red-tailed hawks—only 50 percent live to see their second Spring. Hawks have incredible eyesight. It is believed that if a Red-tailed Hawk could read, it could decipher the headline on a newspaper from a mile away.