Image of Harris's hawk

Description:

"29 December 2014: Observed a pair of Harris's Hawks (Parabuteo unicinctus) near the intersection of State Highway 57 and FM 140 in Frio County, Texas about 10 miles distant from Interstate Highway 35. The pair of Harris's Hawks were preying on a White-tailed Deer carcass (Odocoileus virginianus) that was recent roadkill. The young buck had been hit by a vehicle apparently. All About Birds, the North American birds online encyclopedia hosted by the Cornell Lab of Ornithology, has a very brief thumbnail sketch for Harris's Hawk: ""A handsome hawk of the arid Southwest, the Harris's Hawk hunts cooperatively in pairs or trios. The hawks surround their prey, flush it for another to catch, or take turns chasing it."" Harris's Hawk ranges from South and West Texas and southern Arizona in the United States thence south throughout most of Mexico (except for its southeastern states primarily). From here it ranges on the Pacific Coast of Central America and makes its way into the South American continent where it is found in different parts of the continent from Colombia and Venezuela in the north to Peru, Ecuador and Chile on the Pacific Coast and then in the southcentral part of the continent encompassing parts of Brazil, Uruguay, Paraguay, Bolivia and Argentina. The hawk is well known across Latin America and in the United States it occurs in parts of Texas and Arizona. Wherever it occurs locally its presence is permanent and this bird of prey is considered a year-round or native resident. Harris's Hawk is an authentic raptor of the Western Hemisphere with a range that includes both North and South America."