For their first few weeks at the center, the goshawks had to remain indoors and relatively still. Center workers have fed the birds mice and quail all winter. For the past two weeks, staffers have brought live mice to the flight cage as a test run to see if the birds could successfully capture the rodents, just as the goshawks would in the wild. Goshawks have a wingspan of about four feet, McElmurry said. The birds have very long tails, and the females are much larger than the males.
Goshawks are migratory birds whose population usually fluctuates with that of hares.
They're not an easy hawk to really spot. They spend most of the time in the woods and thickets. The Center for Wildlife receives funds to cover its operating costs from private donations. Staff members and volunteers care for up to 2,000 injured animals and birds a year, according to Bunker. Click here to send this article to a friend Seacoast Online is owned and operated by Seacoast Newspapers.