When one of the birds in the “team” spots a target, it signals to the other hawks, and they descend as one, to feed. The hawks hunt in pairs and threes, who search for their prey at a height of one hundred to six hundred feet (thirty to one hundred eighty-two meters). The Galapagos hawk, as well as having the same strong curved beak and long talons as other raptors, has adopted an unusual method of hunting. They’re not afraid of man, or any other animal and only display any sign of aggression while hunting.

Are They Aggressive?Ī natural apex predator, the Galapagos hawk is noted for being an incredibly approachable bird and has been known to scrounge for food around human settlements. The female of the species is always much larger than the male, but barring the difference in size, both male and female Galapagos hawks are pretty much the same in appearance and color. Juvenile birds are a lighter shade of brown than fully mature eagles, but share the same light brown eyes and bluish-grey to black beaks as their adult counterparts.Īll Galapagos hawks, regardless of their island of origin, have the same wide wings and tails which have adapted to help them hunt their prey. The species varies in size, measuring between forty-five to fifty-eight centimeters, or one and a half feet from tail to beak, and weight, being anywhere from one and a half pounds to three pounds (five hundred grams to one and a half kilo’s) and has a wingspan between one and one and a half meters, or six to seven and a half feet.Īdult birds tend to be dark brown or black, with their heads (or crowns) being slightly darker in color than their backs and their tails are usually streaked with silvery grey stripes. The smallest members of the species are found on Marchena Island, while intermediate-sized raptors are found on Santiago Island, and the largest Galapagos hawks are native to Espanola Island. The Galapagos hawk is physically larger than the other species it resembles and is the second-largest member of the hawk (Buteo) family in the world, even though, unusually for a bird but completely normal for the Galapagos Islands, its size varies according to which island it calls home. While it is similar in appearance to a number of other American species of hawk, namely the red-tailed hawk and the Swainson’s hawk.

Are hawks apex predators