White-Faced Owl vs. Red-Tailed Hawk: Which is the Best Falconry Bird for Beginners?
Uncovering the ideal avian partner for apprentices: How do housing, temperament, and feeding drive dictate the absolute best beginner falconer bird?
Selecting your first predatory companion is an essential milestone in your journey as an apprentice handler. While it is easy to get swept away by visual appeal, identifying the true best beginner falconer bird requires a deep look into real-world operational husbandry, weight management, and hunting.
In this video Isla puts two entirely distinct species head-to-head: the majestic, powerful American Red-Tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) and the compact, charming African Southern White-Faced Owl (Ptilopsis granti). Both species capture the imagination, but they demand vastly different levels of amounts of space, early imprinting, and physical capability from a beginner handler.
The Developmental Matrix: Imprinting vs. Parent Reared Hawks for the Best Falconry Bird for Beginners
One of the most striking differences when discovering the best falconry bird for beginners is the specific age at which the bird must be acquired. For a Southern White-Faced Owl, human imprinting begins at just a few days old. As detailed in our foundational cute owls training journal, owl babies must be hand-reared from as early as two weeks old. This focused socialisation forms a deep maternal bond where the owl thinks of you you as its parent, keeping them calm, content, and highly trusting in your presence.
Raptors like the Red-Tailed Hawk require the exact opposite approach. Falconers rarely raise hawks from early downy stages, because doing so risks "screamer" behaviour or severe food aggression if they identify you as their mother. Instead they are taken on after they are fully fledged. Allowing you to develop a professional training partnership based strictly on food reward rather than artificial imprinting. Beginners can read more about standard care and sportsmanship guidelines through the officially recognized welfare resources at the British Falconers' Club.
Husbandry, Spatial Constraints, and Choosing the Best Beginner Falconer Bird
Before introducing any bird of prey to your home, specialised housing must be built. Evaluating these structures is vital when looking for the best beginner falconer bird, as the space required highlights a major split between these two contenders:
1. Housing and Maintenance Infrastructure
A Red-Tailed Hawk demands a substantial, clear aviary space outfitted with a variety of robust perches to accommodate free-flight exercise or can be smaller if you intend to tether them. Because healthy hawks produce an incredible volume of waste, their facilities require deep, frequent cleanings to maintain pristine sanitary conditions. Conversely, a tiny White-Faced Owl handles smaller aviary beautifully, and can even sit relaxed on a simple indoor perch while you complete your daily work. However, regardless of size, both setups demand specialist double-door safety porches to ensure your bird of prety never escapes when you enter or exit.
2. Nutritional Needs and Weight Management
Dietary management can mean the difference between life and death for a captive raptor. A moulting Red-Tailed Hawk eats a massive diet of up to five full chicks a day, dropping down to three chicks a day during active flying seasons to hone their focus. If you are preparing for this process, checking over a comprehensive hawk training guide will ensure you grasp the nuances of weight boundaries. They are incredibly resilient, offering a wider safety margin if an apprentice makes a minor weight calculation error. A small White-Faced Owl eats a delicate mix of chopped mice and chicks. Because their body mass is so low, their weight boundaries are razor-thin, leaving very little room for beginner error.
| Husbandry Category | Red-Tailed Hawk (Chesney) | Southern White-Faced Owl (Luri) |
|---|---|---|
| Acquisition Age | Adult / Fully fledged (Prevents Imprinting Aggression) | Baby / 2 Weeks Old (Fosters Maternal Imprint) |
| Aviary Footprint | Large Outdoor aviary Required | Compact Footprint / Easily Manageable Size |
| Dietary Window | 3 to 5 Full Chicks Daily suplemented with quail | Finely Chopped Mice & Chicks |
| Weight Margin Error | Forgiving / Broad Safety Window | Fragile / Requires Strict Daily Gram Scales |
| Talon Strength & Mass | Heavy, Large Claws; High Injury Risk for Youth | Soft, Gentle Talons; Safe for Young Handlers |
| Holiday Management | Easy; Neighbours Can Drop Food via a Chute | Easy; Highly Chilled Bird Accepting Hand Feeding |
The Masterclass Breakdown
Vocalisations
Hawks are generally quiet, save for their iconic, piercing cinematic screech used to mark territorial boundaries. White-Faced Owls do not produce a typical hoot; instead, they utter a distinct, melodic native chatter that functions as a highly communicative vocal signature.
Handler Weight Constraints and Safety
The Red-Tailed Hawk is a large, apex hunter. For young people, holding a hawk on the fist can quickly cause fatigue, and their powerful talons demand strict physical respect. The White-Faced Owl is exceptionally lightweight and gentle, providing an excellent stepping stone for mastering glove mechanics.
Which Bird Claims the Crown?
If your ultimate goal is traditional outdoor falconry, the Red-Tailed Hawk is the best choice. However, if you are a young handler or looking for a calm, manageable partner with soft talons and minimal space requirements, the Southern White-Faced Owl serves as an incredible alternative beginner bird.
+ View Video Transcript (Field Notes)
Hello, I'm Isla and welcome back to another video. In this video, we will be comparing white-faced owls and red-tailed hawks. Let's see which bird is best for you. This is Chesney, my red-tailed hawk from America. Did you know red-tailed hawks are the most common bird in America, and they're related to buzzards? What I really like about Chesney is his brown eyes. I think they're really pretty, and he's just a really nice size for a bird.
Now we're gonna compare them as babies. Despite their small size, white-faced owl babies have big personalities. And you have to get them as babies. I got Luri at 2 weeks old, so you can build a bond with them, and so they think you're their mum. Did you know you don't get hawks as babies, you get them as adults because if you don't get them as babies, they can get aggressive while feeding you if they think you're their mum. While owls you need to get as babies so they think you're their mum.
Now we're gonna compare the noise they make. These type of owls, as you just heard, have the cutest little noise ever. They don't exactly make a hoot, but it's really cute. Compared to owls, hawks are generally quite quiet with the noise they make. But have you ever heard the big screech of an eagle in movies? Well, that's not normally an eagle, that's normally a red-tailed hawk, because occasionally they make a loud screech.
Now we are going to compare housing. When we first got Luri, we had her in a smallish cage in our lounge so she could socialise. Now she's moved out into the aviary. I'll show you that in a minute. Now you'll notice she's got her anklets and jesses on so she can't fly away while I'm taking her outside. And like Chesney's house, you can see there's a double door just in case. And this is her lovely home with lots of perches and water for her to fly through.
Red-tailed hawks need a lot of space for housing. Because we let Chesney fly free in his aviary, we need a big space for him and lots of perches. You do need to clean the aviary out quite often because hawks like Chesney do poop a lot. This is Chesney's aviary, as you can see, it's very big. Now, I'm going to show you one of the most important parts: the double doors. We have double doors on his aviary, just to make sure he's extra safe. Now he's in his aviary, nice and happy and relaxed. You'll also notice that his beak is quite long. Once he has shed all his feathers, we'll need to trim it.
Now we're going to compare food. Luri needs high quality food every day, so she eats a mix of chicks and mice. We have to chop them up because she's such a small bird. And as you can see, she's just vomited up what is called a pellet, which consists of bones and fur that she can't fully digest. When Chesney's moulting like this, he eats 5 chicks a day, but when he is flying, he eats 3 chicks a day, because unfortunately Chesney doesn't love us, he just loves food.
Now we're going to talk about leaving Luri on holiday. This is really easy because she's such a friendly bird and really anyone can go into her aviary and hand feed her. Going on holiday is very easy to leave Chesney because we have a chute in his aviary where our neighbour can just shoot chicks through because as long as he eats, he's happy.
Now we're going to talk about temperament. I think Luri is a really, really sweet, nice bird, and she's also very chilled. When I put her in my room on a perch, she just chills there and occasionally flies, but she's really chilled and calm, and from the experiences I've had, she's grown to think I'm her mum and I've grown to trust her. And I think she is an amazing bird. Even though I'm able to hold Chesney, he's not a young falconer's bird. I mean, look at the size of his claws, even though he's so cute, I can't fly him because he's just a bit too heavy and dangerous. Like he could hurt me or someone else. In conclusion, which bird do you think is the best bird for a young falconer like me? Hit that like button and type your answer in the comments. Luri is a really nice bird, and I think she definitely loves me. Look, she's cleaning my hair.
Parallel Journeys
While Isla documents her time with Luri, Dr. Elizabeth Adey shares a professional 12-month masterclass on the care and seasonal management of our resident Pygmy Goats.
Learn about our Pygmy Goats →Avian Insights
Explore technical training fundamentals, legal compliance, and baseline requirements before choosing your introductory species.
Why is the Red-Tailed Hawk widely viewed as the best falconry bird for beginners?
The Red-Tailed Hawk is universally considered the best falconry bird for beginners due to its incredible physiological resilience and strong, food-motivated drive. Its accommodating weight management threshold allows apprentices to safely navigate fine-tuning mistakes without threatening the bird’s health, making it an excellent partner for learning traditional outdoor game hawking.
What makes a Southern White-Faced Owl difficult as a best beginner falconer bird?
While their small size and soft talons make them highly approachable for younger handlers, their low body weight leaves almost zero safety margin. Apprentices must track their daily health with precision, as a weight drop of only a few grams can become critical. They also lack the natural drive to chase traditional game, making them better suited as companion birds than active hunting partners.
How does holiday care vary between hawks and owls?
Both species can adapt well to vacation care if planned ahead. Because a hand-reared White-Faced Owl is friendly and comfortable with humans, they will readily accept hand-feeding from almost any substitute handler. A passage Red-Tailed Hawk does not require hands-on handling while you are away; they can be fed safely by neighbours using a basic aviary drop-chute system.