[Tweeters] Hawk ID help needed ...

[Lyn Topinka]

hi group ... I'm almost hesitant to post but I could use help with 
this bird ... I'm thinking a Red-Tailed however I'm new to birding 
this year and all of my IDs aren't that great ... I've gone thru the 
books and I've Googled lots of pix ... however there's something 
about the posture of this bird and the dark coloration and lack of 
white which makes me hesitant to say it definitely IS a Red-Tailed 
... his location was Ridgefield NWR up by the entrance gate ... I've 
seen lots of Red-Tails down below on the Refuge land and all of the 
ones I've seen have much more white patching on the chest and they 
seem to "slouch" (my term and most likely not a technical bird 
term)  when they sit ... this guy doesn't ...

http://englishriverwebsite.com/RidgefieldNWR/Images07Sept/ridgefield_NWR_hawk_on_post_09-19-07.jpg

thanks in advance,
Lyn
pointers at pacifier dot com





Lyn Topinka
EnglishRiverWebsite.com