FIRE EFFECTS AND USE
WILDLIFE SPECIES: Buteo jamaicensis | Red-Tailed Hawk 



DIRECT FIRE EFFECTS ON ANIMALS : 
Fire directly reduces red-tailed hawk reproductive success if the fire
crowns in occupied nest trees [27].  Fires that kill or otherwise alter
unoccupied nest trees may disrupt reproduction if acceptable nest trees
are scarce.  Red-tailed hawks are reported to be attracted to fire and
smoke [15].  They have been reported feeding on grasshoppers fleeing
from fires [27].  Low-severity fires probably have little direct effect
on red-tailed hawks.  Landers [27] commented that light winter burning
probably does no substantial harm to raptors.


HABITAT RELATED FIRE EFFECTS : 
Red-tailed hawks occur in the following 10 major fire-dependent plant
associations in the western United States:  grasslands, semidesert
shrub-grasslands, sagebrush (Artemisia spp.)-grasslands, chaparral,
pinyon-juniper (Pinus spp.-Juniperus spp.) woodland, ponderosa pine,
Douglas-fir, spruce-fir (Picea spp.-Abies spp.), redwood (Sequoia
sempervirens), and giant sequoia (Sequoiadendron giganteum) forests
[29].

Suppression of fires in large expanses of treeless areas may benefit
red-tailed hawks.  In southern Saskatchewan, the control of fires on the
once open prairies and the planting of trees and shrubs has resulted in
a semiopen, tree-grassland mosaic and consequent territory expansion and
population increase of red-tailed hawks [38].

Although fire may reduce potential nest trees, it may also create snags
for perch sites and enhance the foraging habitat of red-tailed hawks.
Red-tailed hawks often perch on snags created by lightning strikes [3].
They often use fresh burns when foraging due to increased prey
visibility [15,27,32,36].  Regular prescribed burning helps to maintain
habitat for many prey species of red-tailed hawks [10,15,27,29,32].
Several studies indicate that many prey populations increase rapidly
subsequent to burning in response to increased food availability
[15,27].  Fire suppression in grasslands was detrimental to small bird
and mammal populations due to organic matter accumulation and reduced
plant vigor [47].

The suppression of natural fire in chaparral has resulted in reduced
seral stage diversity and less edge [15] which has probably affected
red-tailed hawks in these communities.  Red-tailed hawks are more
abundant in recently burned chaparral areas than in unburned areas due
to greater visibility and less cover for prey [36].  Additionally,
red-tailed hawks are favored by fires that open up or clear
pinyon-juniper woodlands [32].  Raptors associated with pinyon-juniper
woodlands depend upon edges of openings created by fire and scattered
islands of unburned woodlands [15].

In the first year following a severe fire in grassland, ponderosa pine,
Douglas-fir, and mountain big sagebrush (Artemisia tridentata ssp.
vaseyana) habitat types on the Salmon National Forest, several
red-tailed hawks were observed within the burn.  They were not observed
in the area before the fire [10].  Following a fire in a mountain big
sagebrush community on the Bridger-Teton National Forest, red-tailed
hawks were more commonly observed using an area that experienced a
severe fall fire than in a nearby area burned by a low-severity spring
fire [33].  Red-tailed hawks have also been observed hunting on recently
burned areas in Colorado County, Texas [2].
  
Although fire is often benefical to red-tailed hawk prey species, Yensen
and others [48] reported that in the Snake River Birds of Prey Area,
southwestern Idaho, fire may reduce populations of Townsend's ground
squirrels (Spermophilus townsendii).


FIRE USE : 
Prescribed fire can be benefical to red-tailed hawk populations by
enhancing habitat and increasing the prey base [15,27].  Prescribed
burning plans should strive for creation of maximum interspersion of
openings and edge, with high vegetative diversity.  Habitats should be
maintained in a random mosaic.  In most cases, burning plans must be
integrated with proper range management.  Reseeding of perennial grasses
as well as rest from livestock grazing may be necessary to achieve
desired goals.  Burning should be deferred until nesting is completed in
areas where impact to breeding red-tailed hawks may occur [15].  After
logging, Benson [4] suggested broadcast burning rather than piling slash
to reduce high temperature fires which may be destructive to soil
organisms and small mammals.  For more information regarding the use of
prescribed fire in specific habitats for the benefit of raptors, see
Dodd [15].


REFERENCES : 
NO-ENTRY

Related categories for Wildlife Species: Buteo jamaicensis | Red-Tailed Hawk