Visitors to Sky Meadows State Park are likely to look to the sky and catch a glimpse of one of several raptor species, birds of prey, which call the park home. While the park has over 20 species of raptors, some of these soaring hunters have found themselves here with the help of human intervention.

Since 2014, 653 raptors have been relocated to Sky Meadows from Dulles International Airport.

There is a little-known, but incredibly important, conservation effort underway through a long-standing partnership with wildlife scientists at the U.S. Department of Agriculture to protect these precious predators. Ryan Stewart is a Wildlife Biologist and describes the project this way:

“I work with the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture at Dulles Airport. Since 2014, we’ve been working under permits with the DCR [Department of Conservation and Recreation] to relocate raptor species from the airfield at Dulles to reduce the risk of wildlife strikes to aircraft. With the assistance of DCR, we’ve been able to relocate 653 raptors of various species, averaging 91 per year.”

Sky Meadows State Park provides a unique pastoral landscape, where birds of prey (like this Red-tailed hawk) thrive.

In 2020 alone, USDA APHIS (United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service) Wildlife Services has been instrumental in relocating 119 raptors from the airfield at Dulles International Airport to the more hospitable habitat of Sky Meadows State Park. Not only does this keep the birds from interfering with aircraft operations, but it keeps them safe from the dangers of the airport and the urban environment of Northern Virginia.

Sky Meadows State Park provides a unique pastoral landscape where birds of prey thrive and has the added benefit of being only 25 miles from the airport “danger zone.” This is a win-win for the winged ones (whether they be aircraft or birds).

Bird banding is one way that scientists collect data on bird behavior, and is instrumental to protecting the birds and their habitats.

The raptors released last year by Wildlife Services to Sky Meadows represented 10 species, including American Kestrels and Barn Owls. For further reading on how the park and partnership organizations protect these species by providing and monitoring nesting boxes, visit the blog: Birds of Prey at Sky Meadows State Park. As noted there, bird banding is one way that scientists collect data on bird behavior, and is instrumental in protecting the birds and their habitats.

USDA Wildlife Services uses bird banding to track each of the raptors they release at Sky Meadows State Park. Although we hope these feathered friends will have found their “forever home,” banding records from 2020 revealed that eight raptors (five red-shouldered hawks, two red-tailed hawks and one Cooper’s Hawk) made the 25-mile flight back to Dulles International Airport. Each of these was re-released at Sky Meadows where we hope they will remain for their safety and for the visual pleasure they provide our visitors.

On a clear day with a pair of binoculars, visitors might see planes arriving to and departing from the runways at Dulles International Airport, from the Piedmont Overlook.

In a way, the released raptors are not unlike their human counterparts who hail from the Metro DC and Northern Virginia areas. The majority of Sky Meadows visitors are seeking a quiet place to rest and rejuvenate away from the urban sprawl that surrounds them at home.

These visitors often enjoy hiking to the Piedmont Overlook where, on a clear day with a pair of binoculars, they might even see planes arriving to and departing from Dulles International Airport. Then again, they might prefer to take a break from that urban landscape and enjoy the one that surrounds them here.

The rolling hills, pastures and farm structures of Sky Meadows State Park make it a uniquely suitable environment for those escaping harsher habitats, humans and hawks alike.