#zone-tailed hawk

[animal-families-tournaments]

Accipitriformes order, round 1: White-throated Hawk vs Zone-tailed Hawk

White-throated Hawk

Zone-tailed Hawk

Voting ended onJul 14, 2025

[daem0nisms]

Ghostbusters Daemons

Egon Spengler & Kepler (Zone-Tailed Hawk)

[tbalderdash-art-blog]

Migratory May Day 16: Zone-Tailed Hawk

Reference photo by Dale Clark

[birdsnstuff2023]

A study of the Zone-tailed Hawk. These fascinating raptors exhibit "aggressive mimicry," soaring with flocks of Turkey Vultures to approach unsuspecting prey without alarm. This illustration emphasizes the stark, serious expression of the hawk and the contrasting textures of its plumage against a serene desert scene of poppies and dry, weathered wood.

Find it here: https://www.teepublic.com/t-shirt/94097124-zone-tailed-hawk-on-weathered-branch-with-small-wi?store_id=2676853

[animal-forgeries]

today's mimic: zone-tailed hawk, buteo albonotatus

the zone-tailed hawk has been suggested to mimic turkey vultures, most obviously in their flight pattern: the hawks fly unusually with wings raised dihedrally, and will rock back and forth in a similar manner to turkey vultures. additionally, the silhouette and the shape of the flight feathers resemble a turkey vulture much more than other similar hawks. this is an example of aggressive mimicry, since turkey vultures rarely hunt animals, while the zone-tailed hawk is an active predator. its prey will be more likely to ignore the presence of the bird, believing it to be a harmless scavenger. the kettling behaviour of turkey vultures aids the zone-tailed hawk, as it can blend into large gatherings of vultures. although up close the two animals are very different, even experienced birders may have difficulty identifying a zone-tailed hawk from its deceitful silhouette and flight pattern.

model:

photo by roy lowe

flight pattern comparison:

[tinylongwing]

Finally, the last four from the Bird ABCs series! This was a fun little daily challenge to do, and I enjoyed trying to convey info on behavior and personality when possible in these incredibly quick little sketches.

W: White-throated Magpie-Jay, Central America’s boisterous cousin of the Blue Jay

X: Xantus’ Hummingbird, endemic to Baja California in Mexico

Y: Yellow-naped Parrot, a critically-endangered species (~90% of nests fail due to poaching for the pet trade)

Z: Zone-tailed Hawk, with vulture-mimicking coloration and flight style, which allows it to stealthily hunt prey that thinks the birds above only want dead things

[sitting-on-me-bum]

Zone-Tailed Hawk

© Chris McCreedy

[rafallerart]

Paintings 13 through 16 of my volleyball hawks commission.  Only 4 more to go!!! As usual, these are watercolor and gouache on hot press watercolor paper. 

Common black hawk, 4x6 inches

Zone-tailed hawk, 4.5x6.5 inches

White-tailed hawk, 5.5x5 inches

Gray hawk, 5x5 inches