I was leaning towards a Coopers Hawk but feel like it could also be a Juvenile Red-tailed Hawk. How do you tell them apart? I was leaning towards Coopers because of the teardrop-shaped streaks. TIA!
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Hawk ID Help, New Hampshire USA (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter Cote0606
- Start date
The Bird Nuts
Birding Duo
The tail is too short and the barring on the tail is too thin for any Accipiter. This is a Red-tailed Hawk, a young one due to the light eyes and brown barred tail. The band of streaks across the belly with mostly unmarked breast is a good ID mark for Red-taileds.
Cote,
Red-tailed Hawks have a variety of markings that make them easy to identify once you are familiar with them.
In the first picture you can see the white scapular patches or markings (often referred to as "back straps") that most Red-tailed Hawks (except the Dark Morph varieties of the Western Red-tailed Hawk) show. You can also see the narrow tail banding which is a juvenile trait along with its light colored Irises which will become darker as it matures.
In the second picture you can see the Dark Patagial Band along the front edge of the under wing. This is a marking unique to all Red-tailed Hawks.
In pictures 3 and 4 you can see the "belly band" composed here of the "streaking" you mentioned above. It can also be spotted or almost solid. It generally is shaped like a cummerbund like this one is. Then there are its powerful tarsii and talons; much bigger than those on a Cooper's Hawk. (And on most other American Buteos for that matter.)
Bob
Red-tailed Hawks have a variety of markings that make them easy to identify once you are familiar with them.
In the first picture you can see the white scapular patches or markings (often referred to as "back straps") that most Red-tailed Hawks (except the Dark Morph varieties of the Western Red-tailed Hawk) show. You can also see the narrow tail banding which is a juvenile trait along with its light colored Irises which will become darker as it matures.
In the second picture you can see the Dark Patagial Band along the front edge of the under wing. This is a marking unique to all Red-tailed Hawks.
In pictures 3 and 4 you can see the "belly band" composed here of the "streaking" you mentioned above. It can also be spotted or almost solid. It generally is shaped like a cummerbund like this one is. Then there are its powerful tarsii and talons; much bigger than those on a Cooper's Hawk. (And on most other American Buteos for that matter.)
Bob
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