Swainson's Hawk

When you look at the Swainson’s Hawk, you see the impact humans have on the environment. This is because, the Swainson’s Hawk population and range have been negatively affected by human caused climate change and pesticides.

Unfortunately, climate change is a very real treat in our world today, but many long-term effects of climate change are yet to be known. The Swainson’s Hawk has been losing around 11% of their livable range due to the temperature rising about three degrees Fahrenheit. This means that the hawk population will experience more competition with other avian species and less birds will be able to live in these ranges. Hawk populations will drop and young Swainson’s exposed to heat waves could die before every reaching adulthood. Climate change has happened due to things like deforestation and continual destruction of the earth instead of protection, and birds will soon have to pay for these mistakes by humans. The Swainson’s Hawk currently is not in danger, but if climate change persists, the Swainson’s Hawk could someday no longer be around.

Another issue that have caused problems in the Swainson’s Hawk population, is the use of harmful pesticides. Monochrotophos, a chemical lethal to birds in small doses, is used in many different pesticides. This chemical is responsible for the killing of 35,000 Swainson’s Hawks in Argentina. This massive die off was so great that in some areas of Argentina the corpses of the Swainson’s looked like a carpet. This pesticide has been mostly banned, but it still shows how human interaction with nature can still be deadly.

Through both climate change and the use of monochrotophos, human involvement with nature may soon leave the Swainson’s extinct or on the brink of extinction.