millipede Posted March 26, 2019 Share Posted March 26, 2019 Really wish I had a bug free(especially wasp and tick free) spot in the yard to just sit all day long and enjoy the birds. Was out there for a while this morning and had at least 6 red-tailed hawks as well as 5 other hawks fly over. Several of those I was not able to get good enough looks at or pictures. Most seemed accipiter like... one, well it had to be a red-tailed. It was low enough to get good looks at it but was moving too fast for me to bother trying to turn on my camera, zoom, focus... so, I just looked. Initial feeling was red-tailed due to the bulky size of the bird. Was in a weird flying position(always makes things interesting) but as I stared, I didn't see a belly band. The whole thing was plainer than I'd expect. Stared and stared for the few moments it was flying by(again, low enough to get GOOD looks) and the patagials... well, I decided there was something there but REALLY faint compared to what I'd normally see. I'm leaving that as hawk sp but fairly certain it had to just be a red-tailed. Here are two of the other hawks... I think both are cooper's. First one... This one here is a second bird, these were all moving south to north which made them easier to count. One thing I found interesting, just an observation, was the tips to the wings on this bird seemed semi-transparent. I'm not sure if this is a cooper's feature...? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meghann Posted March 26, 2019 Share Posted March 26, 2019 I wanna call the first one a Red-shouldered, and then the second one is an accipiter for sure. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
millipede Posted March 26, 2019 Author Share Posted March 26, 2019 5 minutes ago, meghann said: I wanna call the first one a Red-shouldered, While I was outside I could only think accipiter for some reason. Once I looked at the picture I thought, hmmm.... looks red-shouldered... BUT, I didn't really notice the "commas" on the wings and I just wan't sure. The accipiters can be reddish on the breast as well so, I figured I'd ask. ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Bird Nuts Posted March 26, 2019 Share Posted March 26, 2019 Both are Accipiters and they look like Cooper's to me. Red-shouldereds have different tail patterns among other things. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
akiley Posted March 27, 2019 Share Posted March 27, 2019 On 3/26/2019 at 1:29 PM, The Bird Nuts said: Both are Accipiters and they look like Cooper's to me. Red-shouldereds have different tail patterns among other things. Agreed. Note tail shape and length that rules out all buteos. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
birdbrain22 Posted March 27, 2019 Share Posted March 27, 2019 Both are definitely Accipiters. The first is a definite Cooper's, and I think the second I also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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