JESSIE
Species: Buteo jamaicensis, Red-tailed Hawk • Hatch Year: 1997 • Sex: Female • Disability: Human Imprint
As an eyas (a baby hawk), Jesse was utilized in a science study and became human imprinted in the process. She came to the AEF when she was four months old and stepped right up to the glove without any training! She was transformed into a free-flying star at the Wings of America bird show, she likes to ‘re-arrange hair-styles’ by flying no more than a few inches above the audience members’ heads!
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.