Why has the Swainson’s
Hawk Population Dwindled?
o There has been a decline of 90 percent in the Swainson’s Hawk population in California since 1900, and most of that loss is due to new suburban development of agricultural lands. Swainson's Hawks have had a strong cooperative relationship with farming. Only if cities likeSacramento, Davis (shown middle below), Elk Grove, Tracy, Lodi, Stockton, Galt, Roseville, and Woodland permanently preserve farmland at their borders is Swainson's Hawk likely to survive in Central California. Also individual landowners destroy habitat. Here's a recent example.
o Thousands of acres of farmland and grassland have been and continue to be
converted to suburban, orchard and vineyard use. The photo below left shows
the destruction of a nesting tree with the approval of California Department
of Fish and Game, near a Sacramento canal project in April 1998. Nesting Swainson's
Hawks were driven from the tree. Photo on right is a pair of SWH chicks. Nest
trees should be preserved and many new trees planted to replace those nest treets
that are lost.
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