Hawk Launches Back To Freedom After Being Rehabilitated

A red-tailed hawk returns to the wild after it had spent some time rehabilitating. Check out this awesome slow-motion footage of the successful release of the hawk after receiving care at Pacific Wildlife Care. After the hawk was nursed back to health, it gets a second chance at life all because the above mentioned organization.

Red-tailed hawks are important to the ecosystem because they eat rodents. It's very stressful for a bird of prey to be in captivity. So, ideally the sooner it gets out, once it is 100 percent, the better. It’s not uncommon for people to find abandoned or injured raptors.

This bird of prey with its long, broad wings and short, wide tail is perfectly healed so it can soar high up in the sky, over the open field. It is also known as a buzzard hawk and it is a keen-eyed and efficient hunter. It prefers open spaces, such as field or deserts with high perching places nearby from which it can watch for prey. But this bird is also very adaptable and dwells in mountains and tropical rain forests. It often perches on telephone poles and takes advantage of the open spaces along the roadside to spot and seize mice, ground squirrels, rabbits, reptiles, or other prey. When flapping, its wing beats are heavy. In high winds it may face into the wind and hovers without flapping, eyes fixed on the ground. Such a happy ending for this bird of prey!

This is the most widespread and familiar large hawk in North America, bulky and broad-winged, designed for effortless soaring.