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I shot this photo of a raptor flying near my house today in the foothills of the Colorado Rocky Mountains.  I think it's a Red-tailed hawk.  Is this right?

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Red-tail it is!

Woohoo! Thanks.

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It's a Red-tailed Hawk. You don't always get a good look at the cinnamon tail coloring like in this pic, but RTHs will almost always show that dark band across the chest and it is pretty diagnostic (about the only consistent field mark available to birders like me that are still struggling with Buteos).

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Life list: 259 | Year list: 146 | Year lifers: 16 | Last lifer: Worm-eating Warbler | Last year tick: Louisiana Waterthrush

Good shot! I don't care how common they are, I still like looking at them!

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"It is only a very wise man or a fool who thinks that he is able to identify all the finches which he sees" Michael Harris

Latest sightings: Blue footed Booby, Masked Booby, Galapagos Penguin, oyster catcher, brown pelican, lava heron

Terry:

It's a Red-tailed Hawk. You don't always get a good look at the cinnamon tail coloring like in this pic, but RTHs will almost always show that dark band across the chest and it is pretty diagnostic (about the only consistent field mark available to birders like me that are still struggling with Buteos).

Terry, an excellent mark for soaring Red-taileds are the dark patagial marks - on the leading edge of the wing, near the body of the bird.  Granted, these may not be as obvious as a red tail or a good dark belly band, but many eastern birds show hardly any belly band, and immatures don't have the red tail.  The only hitch is dark morph western birds or Harlan's ...

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Randy

Nice Photo... it made me go back and revisit one of mine... You can see why.

Fraser

Those of us from the east will appreciate the light colour tails with  banding in these western birds.  Those from the northeast have darker, unbanded tails.

Scott

Here's a slightly different version of the same shot.  I cropped it and lightened the shadows in Photoshop to show the detail better.  Incidentally, I shot this photo with a Canon EOS 50D and a Canon L-Series 100-400mm IS USM telescopic zoom lens. Shutter = 1/2000 sec, f/5.6, ISO = 320.

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This hawk was diving into a flock of American Robins in my backyard and then flew up in the tree.

Maybe a female juvenile Red-tailed Hawk?

Scsh:

 

This hawk was diving into a flock of American Robins in my backyard and then flew up in the tree.

Maybe a female juvenile Red-tailed Hawk?

I believe that's a juvenile Sharp-shinned Hawk. The skinny legs and thick breast striping say Sharp-shinned rather than Coopers to me, but you may get other opinions. It's not a Red-tailed, for sure.

mj3151:

I believe that's a juvenile Sharp-shinned Hawk. The skinny legs and thick breast striping say Sharp-shinned rather than Coopers to me, but you may get other opinions.

I agree.  BTW, to Scsh, please start new threads when new pics are posted for ID.  It can get confusing otherwise.  Thank you.

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Randy

Thanks MJ3151. I didn't think a new thread is needed, but I will do that.

 

Red-tailed Hawks are common in Colorado and are seen on many birding trips.  Although they prefer open areas, we see them from the mountains to the prairie.  They develop the reddish color in their tail on the second year.

Bill, Denver

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Bill
Life birds: 1134 (US and international)
Favorite US bird: Red-faced Warbler

We've seen this one many times on the same spot, just as we drive from the on ramp on the highway.

Thus the crappy pictures, highway traffic doesn't understand birders need to take a picture!

It usually sits on one of the streetlights.