And today's hawk is... maybe the same sharpie? It landed on the rose just outside my kitchen window and only stayed for a minute or less - just enough time for me to grab the camera which was close by. My impression was that the hawk was smaller than the usual Cooper's I see here, but that's hard to judge. This is the best shot I got of the tail; not very good Full face but without the breast. Profile. Head is maybe more rounded than the Cooper's here. The back is brown, not gray, so I figured it's a juvenile, but there's no obvious cap with a lighter nape if it happens to be an adult. When it took off I got the only look at the belly which looks more like an adult with a barred pattern. A lousy shot but the bird didn't cooperate. Today is the first day of my Project FeederWatch weekly count so I also emailed PFW with the pics. Just for comparison with a juvenile Cooper's Hawk, this pic was taken on 11/25/11 in the same position outside my kitchen window. Claire This post was edited by claire on Mon, Mar 11, 13 at 15:49

I agree with BN. You indeed have a first-year Red-tailed Hawk. If you have a field guide, take a look at this bird's tail pattern and compare with Cooper's/Sharp-shinned. You'll notice it's a shorter, fatter tail with narrower banding than with Cooper's/Sharp-shinned. Also, compare this bird's tail with an adult Red-tailed Hawk's tail (which is a rusty red color) and you'll see how we can distinguish a juvenile from an adult. They gain their red tails during their first molts (when they are one year old). This bird should be molting soon, as it hatched last year.

Can't say what kind of hawk it is but it could be a young one that hasn't achieved adult coloration yet. Young hawks tend to be bolder than adults and that may be why you could get so close. He may also have been invading the redtail's territory and that's why they were so upset. Just a thought.

And I think Nathan is right. More difficult to id in flight but with a neat picture. Luc