Several well-timbered parks in Wichita have held nesting redtails in recent years. Interestingly, redtails that summer in Kansas generally migrate south to winter in Oklahoma and Texas. Birds found in Kansas this time of the year probably migrated in from northern states or Canada. Like many hawks, redtails like to perch by highways so they can watch the thick grass between the road and private property. In most cases, such places hold far more food than nearby farm fields or grazed pastures.
Redtails come in a variety of color phases, ranging from nearly white to nearly black.