There are a number of Red-tailed Hawks that make their home in downtown Dallas. At least one Red-tailed Hawk is frequently observed around the Fountain Place building. This building features large metal tubes that run up the sides of the building at each corner. These tubes are attached to the building by large metal brackets spaced at regular intervals. I suspect that it is these brackets that make Fountain Place so attractive to Red-tailed Hawks, as they provide excellent places to land high above the city.

In one case, I observed two adult Red-tailed Hawks circling just outside an office window on the 43rd floor. The two birds appeared to be chasing each other.

On a particularly close approach, one of the hawks was observed with what appeared to be a large rat in its talons. As we watched, the hawk with the rat landed on a metal brace near the 43rd floor and began working on its prey. As it did, the other Red-tailed Hawk swooped in very close, forcing the first bird into the air once again.

The two birds continued to circle just outside the window before finally landing together higher on the building, just out of our view. Unfortunately, no pictures of this observation were recorded.

Another time, a Red-tailed Hawk was observed landing on a metal bracket up near the 43rd floor with a freshly killed pigeon in its grasp. After landing, the hawk was observed plucking feathers from its prey before flying off again just a short time later. This episode was witnessed through an office window on the 43rd, which provided an excellent view of the event.

In this image, the small white object near the leading edge of the building is an adult Red-tailed Hawk perched on a metal structure used to secure window washing platforms.
In this image, the small white object near the leading edge of the building is an adult Red-tailed Hawk perched on a metal structure used to secure window washing platforms.
I observed two adult Red-tailed Hawks circling just outside my office window on the 43rd floor of the Fountain Place building in downtown Dallas. The two birds appeared to be chasing each other.
I observed two adult Red-tailed Hawks circling just outside my office window on the 43rd floor of the Fountain Place building in downtown Dallas. The two birds appeared to be chasing each other.

4 Replies to “Red-tailed Hawk – Going Downtown!”

  1. There are at least 4 red-tailed hawks that dominate the skies of downtown Dallas. These raptors hunt in pairs or solo and literally have a smorgasborg of prey in the downtown and trinity river area. From my desk on the 8th floor of my building, while looking up, I have observed mid flights downward dives that catch pigeons in mid-air only to have the hawks toy with the pigeon and the throw it aside. The pigeon actually survived that attack. Normally when you see pigeon parts on the ground and in the streets of downtown they are simply residue left from the red-tailed hawks. There is an abandoned building adjacent to my building with an opened window at the top. The redtails enter and come out with a rat or mouse everytime, excellent rodent control. The pigeon population has diwindled also and when the hawks are around, the pigeons scramle for their life. I wish I had pictures for you all to see because these raptors (red-tailed hawks) are truly the sky dominators of downtown Dallas.

  2. Hi! I wanted to add that I see a pair frequently, daily really, from my view at Harwood and Pacific on the 19th floor. They love to swoop along and around the buildings following drafts. They pair seem to play with each other while flying. They do head towards the Fountain Place building, but I’ve also watched them glide past my building all the way to the large radio tower at the west end of downtown. They like to hang out there as well. They are big and healthy and a fun distraction!

  3. I just saw one today on elm street, near the giant eyeball. This was my first time seeing on downtown! Thank you for this article.

Leave a Reply to Dominique Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.