Calurus is a male Western Red-tailed Hawk who was caught in a barbed wire fence in California in 1992. His left wing was injured, and because of the damage, the primary portion of the wing needed to be amputated. Without his primary flight feathers, Calurus cannot fly and was therefore deemed non-releasable. Calurus joined the HawkWatch International education team through a permit granted by the US Fish and Wildlife Service in 1995. He had his adult plumage (a rufous-colored tail) at the time he was injured. As Red-tailed Hawks get their adult feathers when they are two years old, we know Calurus was hatched in 1990 or even earlier. Calurus is named for the subspecies Western Red-tailed Hawk: Buteo jamaicensis calurus.