Citizens, conservationists rally to save Swainson's hawk

In rural northwestern Chicago Wilderness, conservationists and community groups are confronting several proposed developments that could severely disrupt the only population of the Swainson's hawk east of the Mississippi River.

Since the mid-1970s, when the Swainson's hawks were first discovered here, the rolling, rural landscape around Hampshire, Illinois, has harbored a small population of about five nesting pairs of the birds, which summer here each year. The state-endangered hawks nest in former open oak savannas among hilly pastures and farm fields. In the fall, the Swainson's hawks migrate to spend the winter in the pampas grasslands of Argentina.

Hampshire and other communities sit along a wave of recent development in the western collar counties. Currently, six developers have submitted plans to build on sites that could disrupt Swainson's hawk habitat.

Conservationists predict that such development pressures will likely affect the nesting and foraging strategies of the Swainson's hawk. "Often the hawk is very site-faithful, returning to use previous years' nests unless there's a nesting failure," says Robert Montgomery, a biologist who has been following these birds for more than 30 years. "In that case, the pair might shift to another nearby woodlot or other area for nesting." But widespread development, he says, may eliminate other places the hawks could go. This past summer, of the five nesting pairs, no more than four young were fledged from three nests, according to Dan Wenny and John Bergstrom, of the Illinois Natural History Survey, and Bob Morgan, of Loyola University.

As a result, local residents are banding together to protect the Swainson's hawk. As part of their mission to control urban growth and preserve the area's rural character, the group Citizens After Responsible Expansion (CARE) is educating townspeople and village officials about the Swainson's hawk's habitat needs.

Researchers are racing to learn more about the Swainson's hawks in Illinois, such as their habitat requirements, the size of their home ranges, and how they use their habitat. More information about the Swainson's hawk and the development of its habitat is available from the Bird Conservation Network at (847) 965-1150. To contact CARE, call (847) 683-3752.

— David B. Johnson