🐍 Black mamba vs Red-tailed hawk 🦅
The black mamba is about 4 times as long as the red-tailed hawk.
Getting the animals ready…
| Row | 🐍 Black mamba | 🦅 Red-tailed hawk |
|---|---|---|
| Size The black mamba is about 4 times as long as the red-tailed hawk. | 7.2 to 8.9 ft2.2 to 2.7 m1 | 19 to 26 in48 to 65 cm2 |
| Top speed We don't have a checked number for the red-tailed hawk yet. | 12 mph20 km/h1 | no checked number yet |
| Weight We don't have a checked number for the black mamba yet. | no checked number yet | 1.8 to 2.7 lb800 g to 1.2 kg2 |
| Lives The red-tailed hawk usually lives about twice as long as the black mamba. | 11 years11 years1 | 22 years22 years2 |
| Eats Both eat meat. | small mammals such as rodents, squirrels and hyraxes, and sometimes birds | mostly small rodents, and sometimes rabbits, reptiles and other birds |
| Lives in They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet. | wooded savanna, rocky hills and river forests in south and east Africa | open country with high perches, such as grassland, farm fields, parks and woodland edges, across North and Central America |
Which one? Black mamba or red-tailed hawk
🏁 Who would win the race?
We don't have a checked top speed for the red-tailed hawk yet, so there is no race.
We only race. Real animals mostly avoid each other. A race is the only fair contest: who reaches the tree first, by top speed. Our face-off books compare real numbers, and nobody gets hurt.
9 things to know about Black mamba vs Red-tailed hawk
- The black mamba: A very long, quick snake of the African savanna.
- The red-tailed hawk: A common hawk that watches for small animals from high perches.
- They are different kinds of animal. The black mamba is a reptile, so it has scaly skin; the red-tailed hawk is a bird, so it has feathers and lays eggs.
- The black mamba is about 4 times as long as the red-tailed hawk: 1 against 2.
- The red-tailed hawk usually lives about twice as long as the black mamba. Usual lifespans: 1 for the black mamba and 2 for the red-tailed hawk.
- Both eat meat. The black mamba eats small mammals such as rodents, squirrels and hyraxes, and sometimes birds; the red-tailed hawk eats mostly small rodents, and sometimes rabbits, reptiles and other birds.
- The black mamba lives in wooded savanna, rocky hills and river forests in south and east Africa. The red-tailed hawk lives in open country with high perches, such as grassland, farm fields, parks and woodland edges, across North and Central America. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet.
- The black mamba: doing fine (Least Concern on the IUCN Red List). 3
- The red-tailed hawk: doing fine (Least Concern on the IUCN Red List). 4
Wow facts
🐍 Black mamba
- A black mamba can move quickly across the ground.
- It hides among rocks and fallen trees.
- It eats mostly small mammals.
🦅 Red-tailed hawk
- A red-tailed hawk watches for food from a high perch.
- Most of its food is small rodents.
- It lives in parks and farm fields as well as grassland.
Questions kids ask about Black mamba and Red-tailed hawk
Which is bigger, black mamba or red-tailed hawk?
The black mamba is about 4 times as long as the red-tailed hawk: 1 against 2.
Which is heavier, black mamba or red-tailed hawk?
We only have a checked weight for the red-tailed hawk: 2. Scientists are still working out the other.
Which lives longer, black mamba or red-tailed hawk?
The red-tailed hawk usually lives about twice as long as the black mamba. Usual lifespans: 1 for the black mamba and 2 for the red-tailed hawk.
What do black mamba and red-tailed hawk eat?
Both eat meat. The black mamba eats small mammals such as rodents, squirrels and hyraxes, and sometimes birds; the red-tailed hawk eats mostly small rodents, and sometimes rabbits, reptiles and other birds.
Where do black mamba and red-tailed hawk live?
The black mamba lives in wooded savanna, rocky hills and river forests in south and east Africa. The red-tailed hawk lives in open country with high perches, such as grassland, farm fields, parks and woodland edges, across North and Central America. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet.
Who would win, black mamba or red-tailed hawk?
We never show fights, because a fight is not a fair way to compare animals. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet. What we can compare is how big, how heavy, how fast, how long they live and what they eat, as above.
📤 Share this pair
The link carries only the two animals’ names: peabody.kids/animals/compare/black-mamba-vs-red-tailed-hawk
Where these numbers come from
- University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Animal Diversity Web: Dendroaspis polylepis (black mamba), checked 10 November 2026.
- University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Animal Diversity Web: Buteo jamaicensis (red-tailed hawk), checked 10 November 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 10 November 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 10 November 2026.