Bat House Forum

[LarryH]

This is a picture of the hawk that has been watching the bat house all summer, and going after them when they emerge in the evening. I took this picture as it was sitting in the Birch tree by the bird feeders, and zoomed in on it as much as I could without having to get too close to it. I think this is a Red Tail Hawk, but I am not sure -- can anyone positively identify it?

[Joe Spencer]

Looks like one. Red-tailed Hawks show a wide variation in plumage though.

[Dave Miller]

I would guess that it is a young cooper's hawk. I have seen them chasing mourning doves in my yard.

[cloudman75]

I have four redtailed hawks hanging around and they are much larger and actually have red/ pink on their tails.
I checked my field guide id for birds of NA and this bird looks like a pidgeon hawk , (Merlin)which is really a falcon. The bars on the tail are typical. It looks like a mature male as colors vary somewhat in age and gender. I have some birds like this that kill a dove now and then around my bird feeder. They also like bats in flight for dinner. I'm certainly no authority and just look at my field guides and try to compare. Maybe an expert will post a reply. I do know it is not a red tailed hawk.

Frank

[cloudman75]

this is a photo of a redtailed hawk in my backyard taken through a window. Note how large it is compared to your hawk.

Frank

[Joe Spencer]

Another raptor which looks quite similar to Cooper's Hawk is the sharp shinned hawk. They are often mistaken: http://www.google.com/images?q=sharp+sh ... 80&bih=831

[flyin-lowe]

That is either a coopers hawk or a sharp shinned hawk. I have a purple martin colony and those two hawks are notorious for attacking flying birds, and probably bats. I am new to bats but have been studying martins for years. A red tailed hawk is about twice the size or more of that hawk. That hawk is fast, swift and agile. A red tail hawk is not near as quick and doesn't bother martin colonies.