The way that birds of prey use the air currents to soar dictates what time of day is best to see them. The shape of the landscapes also affect the routes they fly while on migration and the timings of their daytime long-distance flights. Find out why the seasons of fall and winter are the best time of year to go hawk watching and see other birds of prey in flight.
Diurnal birds of prey are most active in the warmest part of the day, close to midday. Late mornings and early afternoons are a good time to spot hawks, eagles, vultures and falcons hunting.
These birds are more active in their hunting once the day has progressed and the air has warmed up. When the air is warm, it forms air currents. Raptors use this thermal lift to rise above the ground and soar, scanning the ground for potential prey.
Midday, especially on a warm day is a good time of day to watch larger raptors like falcons, hawks and eagles as they hunt. More thermal activity in the middle of the day makes it easier for them to fly with minimum effort.
Birds of prey may hunt earlier when it’s cold
Some birdwatchers have noticed that a cold night tends to bring out birds of prey earlier in the day. The theory behind this is that the lower overnight temperature depleted their energy reserves, which prompt them to hunt sooner than usual.
For birders, after a cold night with no cloud cover, it might be worth going out earlier in the day than usual to spot birds of prey.
If the weather is rainy, birds need to dry out their wings before flying. Once the rain has stopped, wait a while before heading off to see the birds of prey making up for the lost time while they were grounded during the rain.
What birds do in wet weather: is bird watching in the rain worth it?
Micro climates will vary from place to place, meaning that the timing of the thermal activity differs too. So it might be a case of trial and error to see when the birds of prey are more active in your local area.
In general, as the afternoon progresses, the air cools. When there are fewer currents for the raptors to soar on, they return to land.
Some birds of prey, especially red-tailed hawks, buck this trend by preferring to fly around dusk. The red-tailed hawks get two benefits by leaving their hunting until sunset.
They gain a tactical advantage over their prey by waiting until low light when they are less easily spotted. The hawks will also have the pick of more creatures to hunt, because the nocturnal species will be out and about.
After night falls, remember there are always the nocturnal birds of prey to observe instead!
When is the best time of year to see birds of prey in flight?
Raptors migration seasons are spring and fall. At these times, the usually-solitary raptors will team up and fly in groups, called ‘kettles’.
During fall, as temperatures cool and days shorten, raptors that breed in the north will be migrating south in search of food sources.
The peak time for them to start their migration is late August to mid-September. The birds of prey usually make these long flights during the daytime up until November, taking advantage of the thermals and updrafts they can find along the way.
Hawk watch: why fall (autumn) is a great time to see birds of prey
If hawks are your special interest then get your binoculars ready for late August to December. Fall is the peak time for hawks to migrate in the US.
Local geographical features and weather conditions, in combination with the time of year and the point in the migration season, will affect the timings of each leg of the birds’ long journeys.
Suggested best time to see birds of prey in flight
September
Broad-winged hawks
American kestrels
Sharp-shinned hawks
Bald eagles
Ospreys
October
Sharp-shinned hawks
Cooper’s hawks
Northern harriers
Red-tailed hawks
Red-shouldered hawks
Merlins
Peregrine falcons
Turkey vultures
November
Golden eagles
Goshawks
Rough-legged hawks
December
Birds on holidays!
January
Rough-legged hawks
Bald eagles
Golden eagles
February
Rough-legged hawks
Bald eagles
Golden eagles
The best time of day to see birds of prey on migration flights
To see the birds of prey in flight, focus your efforts between 10am to late afternoon, from mid-August onwards. Different species will pass over through the course of the season.
If the birds are passing through an area where they are reliant on thermals – the warm air rising from environments such as fields, rocky terrain and urban areas – then the sun-heated air in the middle of the day provides better uplift.
Thermals will be stronger around the middle of the day and so the birds generally fly higher.
You may get a closer view of the birds when the thermals are not quite so strong, when it’s cooler at either end of the day. At these times, the hawks’ altitude is often lower.
The birds of prey also pass through mountainous terrain along ridges, where their lift comes primarily from updrafts. In these places, where their lift is provided by updraft, they can begin their flights earlier in the day and continue them later in the day, closer to sunset. This is also the case in some coastal areas.
Among the hawks, Cooper’s and the slightly smaller Sharp-shinned hawks, in particular, are known for starting nearer to daybreak than other species. Kestrels tend to be early birds in this respect, too.
Why is winter a good time to see birds of prey?
Winter is a great time to see birds of prey for several reasons. Once the leaves have left the trees, the birds of prey are more conspicuous among the branches.
At this time of year, raptors also face the challenges of less light due to the shorter days, and a decrease in the numbers of readily available prey. Some of their usual food sources hibernate in winter or, in the case of songbirds, will also migrate.
To ensure they catch sufficient food, birds of prey make the most of the daylight time that they do have during winter months.
Birds of prey can get wise to where the rare winter food sources are. If other birds concentrate their foraging activities in a certain area – around bird feeders, for example – then they run the risk of the raptors learning their routines.
This can make raptors’ winter habits more predictable.
Winter is the only time that you will have the opportunity to see certain migratory species in North America. The rough-legged hawk, for example, spends its summer in the Arctic tundra but migrates south in the winter to hover over open countryside.
Make the most of the best time to see hawks, eagles and falcons
North America has a multitude of places where you can view hawks and other birds of prey passing through in fall and winter, on their way to warmer climes in Central or South America. Some of the birds of prey will settle to overwinter around the mid-latitudes.
The raptors are most active around midday, doing the majority of their hunting in the warmest part of the day when they can take advantage of the thermals. Dawn and dusk can also be good times to spot hawks in flight seeking their prey.
If you miss seeing the birds of prey migrating in the fall or winter, don’t forget they will be passing through again in the spring. By that time, raptors’ potential prey will be emerging from hibernation and the landscapes will be thawing out ready for nest building and breeding season.
Birds of prey: what’s next?
Now you know all about day time raptors, find out about the other activities that birds get up to at different hours of he day: A typical day in the life of a bird: what do birds do all day?