Red-shouldered Hawk in Ohio?

[bkgs66]

I took this pic thinking it was the same Red-tailed Hawk I had photographed earlier, but when I brought it up on my computer, I realized it had NO red tail! I looked it up and think it's a Red-shouldered Hawk, but they are said to be uncommon in central Ohio, and I had never seen one before. Could someone please confirm? And also let me know about their presence in Ohio if you know, and if they normally live peacefully near Red-tailed Hawks. Thanks.

[Bird Brain]

Definitely a Red-shouldered Hawk. The checkered wing pattern, rufous/rusty breast, and tail pattern are good ID marks, as well as the white "commas" near the wingtips. I'm not familiar with their numbers in Ohio, but they do share territory with Red-tailed Hawks in every region I have lived.

[Charlie Spencer]

Welcome!  AAB's range map places them solidly in Ohio.  We have both here in SC and I've never seen a conflict.  The Red-Shoulder hangs out around wet areas and less open areas while the Red-Tailed hunts over open fields, so they're not competing over much.

https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red-shouldered_Hawk/maps-range

Edited April 25, 2019 by Charlie Spencer

[bkgs66]

Thanks for the responses! I had never seen nor heard of this bird, and saw it in the same place I usually see the red-tailed, so was surprised. Audubon's map shows it as uncommon in Ohio, so maybe they need to update their map? It's great to see bird populations replenishing. I see red-tails so often, but now I will be double checking to make sure it isn't really a red-shouldered I'm looking at.

https://www.audubon.org/field-guide/bird/red-shouldered-hawk#