Naturally Bexar

Raptors of Salado Creek

Look Up and Learn!

Falcons, hawks, eagles, vultures, and owls are all raptors, or birds of prey. The word "raptor" comes from the Latin "rapere," which means to seize or grasp with sharp curved talons. These masters of the sky play an important role in the natural world. For example, vultures eat dead animals, which helps control disease. Owls prey upon rats and mice that destroy crops. Hawks help keep snake populations in balance.

Because the Salado Creek watershed is home to many plant and animal species, it is a good place to see different kinds of raptors.

Red-tailed hawks hunt by day. Their keen eyesight helps them detect the movement of a mouse in teh grass as far as two kilometers - more than one mile - away. In flight, its broad wings span about four feet, and the adults have a rounded brick red tail.

The tail of the Red-shouldered hawk has alternating bands of brown and white. This beautiful species likes to live near the Salado because it eats small mammals, amphibians, crayfish, and reptiles. It can be easily identified by its distinctive call, "Kee-aah."

Some people call the Crested Caracara the Mexican Eagle. This large bird looks like it is wearing a dark toupee on its white head. This carrion (dead animal) eater spends much of its time on the ground and it is usually found scavenging road kill, but it will also eat live mice and snakes.

Two other species that prefer carrion are the Turkey Vulture and the Black Vulture. Both of these shy raptors nest on the ground, laying their eggs among rocks and logs. They can be seen high over the creek, soaring smoothly, flapping their large wings only occasionally.

One of the most colorful species of falcons is the American Kestrel, formerly known as the Sparrow Hawk. This small, versatile flier can be seen on power lines and posts, where it scans for grasshoppers, dragonflies and mice. Males have blue wings while females ahve red wings, and both sexes have reddish and blue crowns.

The Barn Owl works the night shift. It is a nocturnal hunter with soft feathers adapted for noiseless flight. These well-camoflaged creatures with heart-shaped faces have great vision in low light, but their extremely sensitive hearing also helps them detect the footsteps of tiny night creepers. One Barn Owl can eat about 2,500 mice in a year.

Great Horned Owls have soft tufts of feathers that look like horns. These feather horns look like broken branches, which may help hide the owl. Some people say the call of this silent flyer sounds like, "You hoo, who cooks for you?" These night hunters like to eat birds, fish and mammals but they also do an important job preying on skunks, which can carry the rabies virus.

All these raptors are an important part of nature's sensitive web of life. When humans help make their habitat on the Salado Creek safe and secure, we are also protecting ourselves, for we are a part of the same delicate ecosystem.

What Did You Learn?

Choose and mark the best answer to each question.

In this story the word "raptor" means

O one who raps.
O a dinosaur.
O to seize or grasp.
O dead animal.

Many types of raptors are found at Salado Creek because there are

O people who feed them.
O many animals for food.
O rules against hunting.
O pretty places.

Red-tailed hawks can see a mouse

O that is more than one mile away.
O that is limping.
O because it is brightly colored.
O only when it moves.

The tail of the Red-shouldered hawk is

O red.
O narrow.
O pointed.
O brown and white.

The word "carrion" means

O dead animal.
O alternating bands.
O to carry on.
O scavenging.

Vultures like to nest

O near humans.
O in the tops of trees.
O on the ground.
O at the water's edge.

Another name for the American Kestrel is

O Sparrow Hawk.
O Mexican Eagle.
O nocturnal hunter.
O Blue-winged Hawk.

Barn Owls and Great Horned Owls
O hunt at night.
O fly silently.
O blend in with their habitat.
O all of the above.

Keeping It Clean

Know how you can help the raptors of the Salado stay healthy? Keep your house and your yard clean! Why? Well if you keep your place clean you'll have fewer bugs, rodents and other pests. So you'll use less chemicals and poisons to control them. That's good news for the birds of prey because if their food is contaminated with poison, they become sick also.

The Salado Creek would be cleaner too if San Antonians used fewer chemicals in their homes and yards.

Remember, we're all a part of this delicate web of life. We are all connected. Let's act like it!

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saladocreek@hotmail.com

Raptor Resources

Last Chance Forever