Hi Jane! It's been my pleasure (really!) since I enjoy testing my raptor ID skills when I am unable to get outside and do it for real (either due to schedule limitations or birds not cooperating). Raptor ID is something I've been working on for a year or two now; only recently did I become any good at it. Hawks used to look all the same to me. I claimed to love them but I knew so little about them. I had to learn to notice the fine details and become adept at pointing them out quickly. Sometimes a glimpse is all you get. I believe those two guides you purchased will serve you (or anyone) well. The general Eastern guide is a great visual tool but Crossley doesn't have the space on each page to really break down the field marks that make each species unique. His raptor guide will probably be better for that, but I had to purchase Hawks in Flight to REALLY get into the details of real-time ID. Perched birds are easy to master; soaring hawks requires a lot of practice. I have also used online articles (American Birding Association/ Jerry Liguori) to learn new things, especially concerning the amazing diversity of Red-tailed Hawks. I have also learned a lot from experienced birders. I still have a ton to learn so I lurk forums such as these. Gives me an excuse to read a little more about IDing raptors. I have another tip that has helped me TREMENDOUSLY when IDing raptors (birds in general). Always weed out the unlikely/impossible species first. Check: - Location/range (you'll not likely find a Swainson's Hawk in New England unless during spring/fall migration) - Season (Broad-winged Hawks are in s. America during the winter) - Behavior (Northern Goshawks are notoriously elusive forest hawks and are the least likely Accipiter at a bird feeder). Rule out what it ISN'T and you'll likely have a much narrower list of what it could be. After that it comes down to field marks, shape, flying style, etc. If you are lucky enough to hear the hawk's call, then you are well on your way. Cornell Lab of Ornithology's All About Birds has recordings of bird sounds and it's a great reference. I'm sure I left a million things out but that's mostly what I wanted to say. This post was edited by TMFF on Sun, Mar 10, 13 at 17:15

Hi Claire, Found this old thread; thought I'd rehash the past. Ha! I can't help myself. I'm a hawk watcher. Your opening photos were undoubtedly an accipiter. The grey/black banded tail is the dead giveaway. The length of it is more pronounced than that of any buteo. The wing tips of a Red-shouldered Hawk come just about to the tip of the tail when perched. A Red-shouldered would never have grey/black as its tail colors and wouldn't have such a distinction between tip of wing to tip of tail. Also, notice how widely spaced the banding on the tail is; a RSHA juvenile would have narrowly-spaced light brown/dark brown banding on a much shorter, tapered tail. Juv RSHA would have heart-shaped streaking on chest down to the belly. Since you have familiarity with the small size of Sharpies and believed this to be too large, I'd day you had a juvenile Cooper's hawk here. Also, Blue Jays frequently imitate Red-shouldereds to freak out feeding birds and lay claim to what they leave behind. Tricksy birds, they are. Perhaps you've heard them do that. But you may have heard a RSHA in your woods as they seem to cling to the east coast year-round rather than fully migrate out. This post was edited by TMFF on Thu, Feb 7, 13 at 17:31

I simply used the term that was in the article I read, with photo. That is how it was identified. Whether it is a moth or wasp makes no difference to me. I was just trying to find out what killed it. Now, I assume the tarantula won. I hope. After doing a little more research, I watched a video, almost 7 minutes long, of the battle between tarantula hawk, and tarantula. I read that they don't *usually* sting humans. To my great relief. And, I know that what I found here at my home is correctly identified. I have him (or her) in a glass jar, and used magnifier. Thanks for your thoughts.

It's sometimes a process, rehabber46, just learning (sometimes the hard way) what to do or not do. I see it all around me, the destruction of habitat as the city encroaches on the more 'wild' part of a county. People fleeing the 'city' move into portions of the county that were basically flattened and stripped of trees and shrubs, acres of it. Makes no sense to me, to be honest. Those bare and manicured yards are often kept that way with pesticides. Heck, we don't even spray for mosquitos. We just let the bats do the job for us. Right now, my yard is covered in tons of leaves. Many people don't know this, but some 300 species of insects (butterflies, moths, native bees, etc) overwinter in leaves, many of them attached to the very things most rake, mulch, mow, and clip away. Leaving leaves on the lawn, undisturbed, means far more beautiful and beneficial insects in the coming spring, and it also means more food for the birds as well. We've planted 2 plots of garden for hummingbirds and butterflies (and bees of course), and we've also planted native shrubs (additional ones to those already out there) for birds. American Beautyberry was our most recent. We have oaks that drop an abundance of acorns, several black cherry trees, maples, pine, and tons more. Even holly is beneficial to birds. As long as it's native, it's beneficial. As they say... fresh food, water sources, and shelter (for protection against predators and nesting), and you'll be helping nature thrive. Honestly, it's a lot less yard work when the shrubs are left 'scrubby' and the leaves are left until the temps are back into the 50's consistently, when raking is less harmful to what's overwintering in those leaves. I see more and more people going for the 'cottage garden' or 'wild garden' look for both just landscape.. and even vegetable gardens. I prefer the more messy and wild gardens than the sterile landscapes of most suburbs.