PEEC Nature at Night series features live raptors Wednesday
Families got a close-up look at live raptors at the Los Alamos Nature Center, and one red-tailed hawk fact stood out: juveniles do not yet have the red tail.
Families got a free, two-hour look at live raptors at the Los Alamos Nature Center as PEEC’s Nature at Night summer series put the Santa Fe Raptor Center front and center. The program ran from 4 p.m. to 6 p.m. and paired live birds with hands-on nature fun in a format built for after-school and after-work schedules.
The appeal went beyond the novelty of seeing a hawk or owl up close. Santa Fe Raptor Center says it has cared for injured birds around New Mexico since 2004, and it uses public programs to explain the role raptors play in the environment. The center says it treats more than 75 raptors and other birds each year, while its educational birds travel to schools, colleges and community events throughout northern New Mexico.
That made the event useful for more than just children looking for something to do. In northern New Mexico, birds of prey are part of the everyday landscape, from red-tailed hawks over the mesas to great horned owls in parks and open space. One surprising field guide fact residents can use: western red-tailed hawks are so variable that juveniles do not yet show the species’ signature red tail, which means the big hawk on a fence post is not always as easy to identify as it first appears.
PEEC’s Nature at Night lineup kept the nature center active on Wednesday evenings through June and July, with guest presenters beginning at 5 p.m. That gave Los Alamos families a recurring, low-cost way to see a live raptor at close range, ask questions and turn a routine evening into a local science lesson without leaving town.
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