Red-Tailed Hawk Hatched in Eagle’s Nest Draws Attention

[FamTimes reporter Jennylyn Gianan] Linda Robson, who lives in Canada, witnessed an approximately four-week-old red-tailed hawk chick that had hatched in an eagle’s nest alongside three eaglets.

Her husband was the first to spot it. At the time, he told Robson, “There’s something strange in the eagle’s nest. There’s a small gray bird.”

Upon closer observation, the gray bird turned out to be a red-tailed hawk chick nestled among the eaglets. What makes the situation even more intriguing is that the two species are usually hostile toward each other, raising the question of how this unusual community of birds came to exist.

Commenting on the situation, David Bird, a professor of ornithology at McGill University, said, “It appears that the eagle pair attacked the red-tailed hawk living here and took over its nest. They seem to have caught and eaten one of the chick’s parents as prey.” He added, “When the egg hatched and the hawk chick emerged, the eagles apparently decided it posed no danger. Instead, the pair’s parental instincts grew stronger, and they raised the hawk chick as though it were their own.”

He went on to express serious concern, saying, “However, as the eaglets grow larger, they may eat the hawk,” and, “Even if the hawk grows up safely, it may face an identity problem after leaving the nest.”

Jennylyn Gianan fam1@pcss.co.kr