Swainson’s Hawk – Oregon Conservation Strategy

Photo Credit: Tom Koerner, U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service

Overview

Species Common Name Swainson’s Hawk
Species Scientific Name Buteo swainsoni
State Listing Status Sensitive

Ecoregions

Blue Mountains

Located in NE Oregon, the Blue Mountains ecoregion is the largest ecoregion in the state. It provides a diverse complex of mountain ranges, valleys, and plateaus that extend beyond Oregon into the states of Idaho and Washington.

Columbia Plateau

The Columbia Plateau ecoregion was shaped by cataclysmic floods and large deposits of wind-borne silt and sand earlier in its geological history. It is dominated by a rolling landscape of arid lowlands dissected by several important rivers, and extends from the eastern slopes of the Cascades Mountains, south and east from the Columbia River to the Blue Mountains.

East Cascades

The East Cascade ecoregion extends from the Cascade Mountains’ summit east to the warmer, drier high desert and down the length of the state. This ecoregion varies dramatically from its cool, moist border with the West Cascades ecoregion to its dry eastern border, where it meets sagebrush desert landscapes.

Northern Basin and Range

The Northern Basin and Range ecoregion covers the very large southeastern portion of the state, from Burns south to the Nevada border and from the Christmas Valley east to Idaho. It is largely a high elevation desert-like area dominated by sagebrush communities and habitats.

Special needs

Swainson's Hawks require expansive grassland habitat with scattered nest trees and small mammals for prey.

Limiting factors

Swainson's Hawks have relatively large area requirements. Significant losses of grassland habitat have contributed to declines of this species. High mortality of wintering birds due to pesticide misuse in the Pampas of Argentina is well documented.

Data gaps

Conduct systematic surveys of Swainson's Hawks to assess status and distribution. Evaluate potential competition with Red-tailed Hawks (Buteo jamaicensis), especially where nest trees are limited.

Conservation actions

Expand partnerships with private landowners and continue comprehensive conservation planning with federal land managers. Protect nest trees. Maintain shrub-steppe and herbaceous shrub habitat to promote a diversity of prey species.

Key reference or plan

Conservation Strategy for Landbirds in the Columbia Plateau of Eastern Oregon and Washington