Broad-winged Hawk
(Buteo platypterus)

Summary

Picture of bird
© Len Blumin - License
For additional photos and vocalizations, visit Dendroica. (Link opens in a new window.)

The Broad-winged Hawk is a common but secretive bird of Canada's southern deciduous and mixed forests from Alberta east to the Maritime provinces. The Breeding Bird Survey suggests that the Canadian population has increased steadily since about 1970. This species was persecuted in the past, a practice that has declined but still continues in some areas (Goodrich et al. 2014). This species has been identified as a priority for conservation and/or stewardship in one or more Bird Conservation Region Strategies in Canada.

Designations

Main designations for the species
DesignationStatusDateSubspecies, population
IUCN (Global)Least concern2018 
Wild Species (Canada)Secure2015 
Bird Conservation Region StrategyPriority Species2013 

Population status

Geographic area or populationPopulation change relative to ~1970ReliabilityStatus in relation to goal
CanadaModerate IncreaseMediumAt an Acceptable Level
 

Population estimate

Geographic area or populationPopulation estimate
Canada500,000 - 1,000,000 adults
 

Distribution maps

 

Migration strategy, occurrence

Long-distance migrant

Responsibility for conservation

Geographic areaResponsibility based on % of global population
CanadaModerate

General nesting period in Canada

Nesting period starts between late April and mid-May and ends in mid-August, depending on the region. Before or after this period, the probability of an active nest is lower.
 

Conservation and management

The affinity of this species to large patches of forest cover (Szuba 2007) raises concerns for forest fragmentation on the breeding grounds, as well as for the wintering grounds in Central and South America (Goodrich et al. 2014). Reforestation in parts of eastern North America likely increased breeding habitat in the 20th century (Goodrich et al. 2014), though the amount of available large tracts is not well known. Forest management regimes that limit timber growth to less than 40-year cycles are likely unfavorable to the species (Goodrich et al. 2014).

 

Bird conservation region strategies

Environment and Climate Change Canada and partners have developed Bird Conservation Region Strategies in each of Canada’s Bird Conservation Regions (BCRs). In these strategies, selected species are identified as priorities for one or more of the following reasons:

  • conservation concerns (i.e., species vulnerable due to population size, distribution, population trend, abundance, or threats)
  • stewardship responsibilities (i.e., species that typify the regional avifauna or have a large proportion of their range or population in the sub-region)
  • management concerns (i.e., species that require ongoing management because of their socio-economic importance as game species, or because of their impacts on other species or habitats)
  • other concerns (i.e., species deemed a priority by regional experts for other reasons than those listed above or because they are listed as species at risk or concern at the provincial level)

Select any of the sub-regions below to view the BCR strategy for additional details.

BCRs, marine biogeographic units, and sub-regions in which the species is listed as a priority
RegionSub-region and priority type
Boreal Hardwood TransitionBoreal Hardwood Transition, sub-region and priority type: Ontario and Manitoba -- Stewardship
Boreal Hardwood TransitionBoreal Hardwood Transition, sub-region and priority type: Quebec -- Stewardship
Boreal Taiga PlainsBoreal Taiga Plains, sub-region and priority type: Prairie and Northern -- Other
 

References

  • Farmer, C.J., L.J. Goodrich, E. Ruelas Inzunza, and J.P. Smith. 2008. Conservation status of North America's birds of prey. pp. 303-419 in: State of North America's Birds of Prey. K.L. Bildstein, J.P. Smith, E. Ruelas Inzunza, and R.R. Veit (Eds.). Nuttall Ornithological Club, Cambridge, MA, and American Ornithologists' Union, Washington, D.C., USA.
  • Goodrich, L.J., S.T. Crocoll and S.E. Senner. 2014. Broad-winged Hawk (Buteo platypterus), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. Goodrich, L.J., S.T. Crocoll and S.E. Senner. 2014. Broad-winged Hawk (Buteo platypterus), The Birds of North America Online (A. Poole, Ed.). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, New York. (Link)
  • Szuba, K. 2007. Broad-winged Hawk. pp. 182-183 in: Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Ontario, 2001-2005. Cadman, M.D., D.A. Sutherland, G.G. Beck, D. Lepage and A.R. Couturier, Eds. Bird Studies Canada, Environment Canada, Ontario Field Ornithologists, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, and Ontario Nature, Toronto, Ontario.