Hawk Mother: The Story of a Red-tailed Hawk Who Hatched Chickens

(Hardback)

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Description

An injured red-tailed hawk can no longer fly free, but her instinct to become a mother is so strong that she hatches and raises two chickens in this true and heartwarming story of interspecies friendship.

What happens when two baby chickens find themselves in a nest with a hawk Dont hawks usually eat chickens Sunshine, a red-tailed hawk, can no longer fly free, but her instinct to be a mother is so strong that she builds a nest in her aviary every spring and lays two infertile eggs. One year, Kara, her caretaker, decides to try something different. She gives Sunshine two fertile chicken eggs. Sunshine patiently incubates the eggs, and then they hatch. Will the chickens recognize Sunshine as their mother Will Sunshine accept the chicks as her own Join zoologist Kara Hagedorn and Sunshine to find out what happens in this heartwarming story of nurture over nature.

Free, downloadable activities designed to accompany the book are available on the publisher's website. Research, anatomy, nature, art, vocabulary, and literature activitiesaddressCommon Core State Standards: ELA/LiteracyandNext Generation Science Standards.

Reviews

"Thoroughly 'kid friendly' in organization and presentation, profusely illustrated with full color photography, "Hawk Mother: The Story of a Red-tailed Hawk Who Hatched Chickens" is very highly recommended for family, elementary school, and community library picture book Pets/Wildlife collections.-Midwest Book Review

* Midwest Book Review *

"In this moving true story, zoologist Hagedorn relates the story of her unusual encounter with a wild red-tailed hawk. Shot down but not killed, the injured raptor is brought to the wildlife center where the white author works. Thus begins a long relationship between an exceptionally patient and caring scientist and a wounded animal. Through dramatic full-page color photographs and straightforward narration, Hagedorn describes how she enabled the hawk, named Sunshine for her happy disposition, to live a life in captivity as naturally as possible. In a large, purpose-built aviary, bird and scientist together construct a nest in which the bird lays two eggs. Although the unfertilized eggs will never hatch, the mother bird faithfully incubates them. This process continues for several years, when Hagedorn tries the experiment of substituting two fertilized chicken's eggs for Sunshine's own eggs. With great excitement, hawk and woman watch the chickens hatch. The bird's maternal instinct wins over her predatory nature, and she feeds and raises the two roosters as if they were her own offspring. Hagedorn concludes by reminding readers that "we can all overcome challenges and adjust to new situations with the help of others!" A well-told personal story with a positive environmental message." (author's note, glossary) (Informational picture book. 6-10)-Kirkus Reviews

* Kirkus Reviews *

Zoologist Hagedorn tells the story of Sunshine, a red-tailed hawk she adopted after the bird was shot by a hunter and left incapable of surviving in the wild. In plainspoken present-tense narration, Hagedorn details how she has cared for Sunshine over time: 'Every day I help her out into the yard so she can bathe in the rain or stretch her broken wing in the warm sunlight.' After Sunshine constructed nests and laid (unfertilized) eggs for several years, Hagedorn tried placing two fertile chicken eggs in Sunshines nest, an experiment that paid off when the hawk accepted the chicks that hatched as her own. Large, close-up photographs show Sunshine caring for the chicks until they are full-grown roosters. A tender story of cross-species relationshipsmost movingly, perhaps, the one between Sunshine and the author." Ages 59.-Publishers Weekly

* Publishers Weekly *

Author Bio

Kara Hagedorn loves animals. In college she studied zoology. She has worked as a wildlife biologist for Cornell University, Morro Bay National Estuary Program, Topaz Solar Farm and New York State Parks, where she was also a naturalist and environmental educator for 12 years. Kara lives in Santa Margarita, California, with her husband, two horses, and Sunshine the hawk. To learn more about Kara and Sunshine, visit www.sunshinehawk.com.