Do Hawks Eat Dead Animals? Everything You Need to Know!

We know hawks as opportunities and carnivores. They take advantage of everything that they get in their claws. Is it only limited to living things, or do hawks eat dead animals too? Let’s find out.

Most of the healthy and adult hawks usually prefer to kill their prey as they like their meat as fresh as possible. But if there is a dead animal in front of a hawk, in some cases, it will also go for it, as dead animals are a ready-made meal. As carnivores, they just need meat, be it their prey or someone else’s leftovers.

In this article, I will provide insights on when hawks consume dead animals, including whether they eat rotting carcasses, and which type of prey they prefer between dead and live animals. If you’re curious about the dietary habits of hawks and want to discover some fascinating facts, then keep reading until the end.

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Why or When Do Hawks Eat Dead Animals?

Because of hawks’ extraordinary hunting skills, they are known as one of the dominating birds in the sky. Maybe that’s why most of us assume that hawks only eat the fresh flesh of their prey. But the truth is though they like fresh meat, they would also go for dead animals as they are natural scavengers.

Whether a hawk will eat dead animals or not depends on a couple of things. For instance:

Innate Nature Of Hawk

Hawk is known as an opportunist, and dead animals are easy and ready-made meals. So as per their instinct, it’s obvious that they would take advantage of it.

Sometimes predators can’t finish their whole prey. So as soon as they leave the place, hawks swoop in to eat the leftovers.

In every dead body of an animal, some hawks see its meal.

Where The Hawk Is Living

Whether a hawk will eat dead animals or not depends much on where it is living. A hawk living in zoos or other centers will certainly eat dead animals. It’s because they are used to eating dead animal flesh, as this is all they get. They have no other choice.

On the contrary, a hawk living freely in the wild would instead choose to kill its prey and eat fresh meat.

Besides, living in a city or wild also makes a difference in hawks eating patterns.

In cities, there is a limitation of food resources. So they need to adapt themselves to whatever is available. In cities, hawks need to survive on their hunting skills as the dead animals are not easily seen. They kill rats, mice, lizards, small birds, or even puppies or cats.

In the wild habitat, hawks get more live prey as well as more dead animal bodies. So there’s more chance of hawks eating dead animals.

Availability Of Food

Hawks are carnivores. They need meat to live. If there is a scarcity of prey or food, they will surely eat dead animals. Particularly in the winter, there is usually a scarcity of food, so wild hawks eat everything they get in their claws, including dead animals.

The Age Of Hawks

Baby hawks eat anything that their parents bring. Usually, hawks bring a part of their prey or leftover of other predators for their babies. So babies are always eating dead animals.

Do Hawks Eat Dead Rotting Animals?

So now we know that hawks eat dead animals. But do they also eat dead, rotting things?

Well, it depends on how hungry the hawk is and how much food resources are available there. When there is a scarcity of food, they will have anything that they get at claws, even dead rotting animals.

This could be animals that were killed by predators like bears, foxes, coyotes, or any other carnivores, or maybe animals died of natural causes. Doesn’t matter how the animal has died, if the hawk is hungry, it will grab anything.

Hawks have sharp eyesight, so they can easily spot any edible thing, be it its next prey or any free fest of dead animals.

Which Hawks Prefer Alive Prey Or Dead Animals?

Hawks keep an eye on their prey from a high vantage point and pounce on it whenever they get a chance. Then they again fly high, carrying the prey. Sometimes hawks start to eat their prey alive because they don’t want to spend their energy to kill it.

However, some hawks have been seen torturing their prey to kill it. Maybe those hawks prefer to kill their prey before eating it.

So it’s about a particular hawk’s preference, whether it wants live prey or wants to kill its prey before eating.

Again, some hawks take advantage of animals that died from predators or other causes. It’s like a free fest for them. Sometimes they even snatch dead animal’s flesh from the predator and fly back to the high. If they are hungry, they will even go for ratting dead animals.

But usually, a healthy adult hawk prefers to kill their prey and have fresh meat.

Final Words

Most of the adult and healthy hawks living in the wild prefer fresh meat be it their prey or someone else’s. Hawks are known as opportunities. So they won’t hesitate to take advantage of any dead animals as it’s like a ready-made meal for them.

But usually, they prefer to prey on small mammals or birds like mice, rabbits, squirrels, rats, snacks, and others that fit in their claws in their meal.