SNHU's Red-tailed Hawks
Date
2024-04-03
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Southern New Hampshire University
Abstract
During our first year at Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU), in fall 2021, we noticed two Red-tailed hawks on campus that we named Hank and Katy. Throughout the school year, we observed frequent changes to the school environment, like trees that were cut down. The loss of forested areas caused us to worry about the safety of the hawks. We questioned the hawks’ roles on campus and wanted to learn more. Our curiosity led us to initiate this research to educate other students and conserve the hawks’ presence on campus. After about a year, the hawk pair bred and hatched a chick we named Finn. The introduction of a juvenile to the hawk family carried our data along into the 2nd year of research. The guiding questions of our research were (1) How does the family of Red-tailed hawks interact with the SNHU campus and community? and (2) In what area of the campus are the hawks nesting? We used a campus survey, social media, observations, and drone deployment to collect data. We found there was a mutualistic relationship between the campus and the hawks. The campus provided a habitat for the hawks while the hawks controlled animal populations through hunting. We also found that the SNHU community was knowledgeable about the hawks' presence, as shown by their involvement in the survey and social media. We did not locate an exact nesting site. However, we believe that the southern forested area of campus is the most likely location due to the protective habitat provided by the trees. We aim to continue our research through next year by engaging with the community and creating an informative plaque to display our research.
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