Redtail Stiltbird
Basic Information
Anatomy
The species highly resembles the Secretary Bird of Africa, with many similar traits. Redtail Stiltbirds have extremely long legs, long necks, and large eyes. Their beaks are quite robust, allowing them to easily break bones of their prey. Both sexes perform mating displays, in which the birds show off the feathers of their tails and wings to potential mates in courtship dances- the featers in these areas generally lack any patterning, and are instead quite glossy and smooth.
Although the species spends much of its time on the ground, they are not incapable of flight. Redtail Stiltbirds are not the quickest while in flight, but relatively agile for their size and able to make fast turns in order to keep up with fleeing prey. It is widely believed they are descendants of Buteo buzzards and hawks.
Ecology and Habitats
Redtail Stiltbirds are found across North America below the glacial line, but are most typically found in prairies, grasslands, and sparse woodland environments. The exception is in Arizona and Mexico, where the birds are curiously absent, likely due to competition with other species such as coyotes and jackals.
Dietary Needs and Habits
The birds are obligate carnivores that feast on a wide range of small to medium sized mammals, with a preference to ground dwelling species such as rabbits, skunks, prairie dogs, mice, voles, and moles. They primarily hunt by keeping watch from trees, stumps, and rock formations for animals to leave their burrows and wait for them to enter, and will strike when a prey item has just entered. Redtails are known to grab onto prey's hindlimbs or hindquarters and break their bones with their crushing bites, using their extremely powerful heads to pull prey out into the open to be consumed.
Commonly, the birds will take their prey into their roosts pieces at a time and will occasionally use undesirable portions as bait for further prey to scavenge off of. Their ability to plan in advance and use larger bones as traps has been extensively studied- many studies revealed that the species prefers creating these traps in long grasses and brush that is difficult for prey to escape from, but the birds can easily stand over such as briar and thorn patches.
In the event of a failed ambush, the birds are more than capable of running down prey such as rabbits without taking flight, saving significant reserves of energy for being able to dispatch their prey and fly away with it once dead.
Origin/Ancestry
Natural
Conservation Status
Least Concern
Average Height
1 - 1.5 feet tall
Body Tint, Colouring and Marking
Brown, cream, white, and red or orange. Highly variable depending on region
Geographic Distribution
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