Hawk ID Milford, CT USA (1 Viewer)

[glaudenslager]

I get so confused with hawk identification anytime the lines blur. Would appreciate any of your thoughts on what this individual may be.

We have red tails in the neighborhood, and this one looks a bit different with the brown streaks neck to feet in front. Our other red tails have white chests and the brown streaks across the belly. This one is really big, red tail size at least, which leads me to think that's what it may be.

A few days this week at midday he landed on top of one of our bird houses for 10-15 minutes, scanning. It's about 12-15 feet off the ground, right next to a stream and close to a wood line. Semi-open area with grass yards and larger tree cover. Normal suburban street. Ample birds and small mammals for food sources.

 

[aeshna5]

Juvenile Cooper's?

 

[fugl]

Young Northern Goshawk, I would say.

 

[ceasar]

I'll go along with Goshawk. It has juvenile markings. That is a big bird perched on that bird house. Tarsi look like they are thicker than Coopers. OP estimates it to be as big as a RTH. Better picture of head in #1 and #3 might give a good look at its supercilium.

Bob

 

[glaudenslager]

I'll go along with Goshawk. It has juvenile markings. That is a big bird perched on that bird house. Tarsi look like they are thicker than Coopers. OP estimates it to be as big as a RTH. Better picture of head in #1 and #3 might give a good look at its supercilium.

Bob

The only other pic I got is attached, right before he flew off. Otherwise he sat the same way in the rain the whole time, just scanning.

Looking in my Sibley's I noticed similarities to juvenile NG, but I've never identified any kind of GH before, so I couldn't make that connection. It was definitely a big bird, easily the same size as our neighborhood adult RTHs. Again pointing me to NG but just a bit out of my league to identify. We also have juvenile and adult Coopers here regularly, so I am 100% sure that it's not CH, way too big.

 

[fugl]

The head feathering is very disheveled for some reason (molt? prey fighting back?) which accounts for the absence of an obvious white eyebrow. Everything else screams goshawk: large size as per your say-so; the heavily streaked underparts with the streaking extending to the vent area; the thick legs.

For comparison with your bird, here’s a photo of a young goshawk that turned up in my Reno backyard some years ago—
https://www.flickr.com/photos/fugl/405277956/in/album-72157697295425675/

And here’s another at a nearby local park—
https://www.flickr.com/photos/fugl/405286098/in/album-72157697295425675/

 

[glaudenslager]

Yes the head was very disheveled, which I thought could be due to molting of a young bird, plus it was raining like a monsoon for hours. This looks very much like your pics of the NGH.