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by Elliotte Rusty Harold.
Original Post: Anyone Recognize This Hawk?
Feed Title: Mokka mit Schlag
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Spotted this unusual large hawk at San Joaquin yesterday round dusk:
From the shape, it’s almost certainly a Buteo. My best guess is Red-tailed Hawk, but it really didn’t feel right for that. It could have been some Western juvenile plumage I’m not used to, but it really gave the impression of being huge, even larger than a Red-tail. The other possibility is Ferruginous Hawk, which I’m not used to at all. Neither of those seems spot on though.
If it helps, the bird showed definite white on the head, when it turned:
Any ideas?
When I went back today, there was a juvenile Red-tailed present, but it was clearly a different bird. It had the complete breast band you expect to see in a juvenile Red-tailed.