Swainson Hawks have been on the threatened species list in California since the 1980s. Although their numbers are slowly recovering this special hawk deserves protection so their numbers can flourish again. We recently had a wildlife rescue that went above and beyond to protect these beautiful birds of prey. Below is our story of how people can help wildlife survive in the ecosystem that we share together.
On Tuesday, June 21st Gold Country Wildlife Rescue took a rescue call from Caroline, a Wildlife Biologist at Ecorp Consulting. Her company has been asked to ensure that a nest of Swainson’s hawks at a construction site is protected on behalf of the development company. They used a spotting scope to view the nest from a distance. On Friday, June 24th the hawks (mom and dad) were spotted with three chicks in the nest. Since there was no construction on Saturday or Sunday, the nest was not under observation. On Monday the biologist did not see any chick activity at the nest.
On Tuesday Caroline went out to investigate, after seeing no evidence of the hawk chicks in the scope and seeing the mother hawk repeatedly flying down to the ground and back up to a branch. She found a single Swainson’s Hawk chick on the ground. The chick was a nestling and not ready to fledge (fly). She called Gold Country Wildlife Rescue for advice. We confirmed that renesting the chick would be the best thing for it. Unfortunately, the nest was 35-50 feet up the tree.
Caroline used her contacts to connect with Bryan at Up A Tree Arborist Services. They were willing to use a boom lift to access the nest and so the boom lift was brought to the site. Gold Country Wildlife Rescue arrived on-site to care for the hawk. Bryan used the boom to determine if there were any other chicks in the nest. He discovered that although the nest was empty, it
was essentially flat. In other words, it did not have any sides to keep chicks from falling. After discussions with other contacts at GCWR, it was decided to try to improve the nest. Bryan took branches from the ground up to the nest. He then weaved a side for the nest. He also made sure that there would be enough shade from the afternoon sun.
GCWR administered fluids to the chick and fed it to ensure that it would survive the next few days. Bryan then took a supply of mice and the chick and placed it into the nest. While he was performing this, Caroline spotted the dad hawk flying in the area, which was a very good sign. After the chick was placed in the nest, GCWR, Bryan, and Caroline all left the nest site. About an hour later Caroline reported that both the mom and dad hawks had returned to the nest and were caring for the chick.
