Hawk ID

I was going through some old photos of mine, and I came across this photo that I took last year of a hawk that I can't identify. What's really confusing me is the white forehead. Looking in my field guides and online the only hawk I can find with a white forehead is the Swainson's hawk, but that's a more western species and I took this here in Massachusetts. Unfortunately this is the only photo I got of it, and the IQ is not the greatest. Do any Eastern hawks occasionally show a white forehead, or is this a vagrant Swainson's?

I forgot to add this was taken middle of April.

YIKES! The best ID I can come up with is "hawk in a tree"... since there aren't really any discernable ID markings.... Looks to be pretty good size, so could be a Red-Shouldered...could be a Cooper's..... could be a Red Tail (but you don't usually see them hiding in trees, and I'm not seeing a hint of a belly-band) could be ?????????????
(Head looks to be fairly large, which is why I lean toward RSH or Coop.) Quite unlikely it would be a Swainston's.... I think all the white is due to the lighting.

Hi Chris it is a buteo more than likely a redtail.Redtails come in so many different color phases light to dark . Looks like a female of the species.As the birds get older they tend to lighten up.And then comes the question it doesn't have any color on the tail' immature or passage birds don't have the red color the first year. Hope this help,s

I'm still Accipiter here.... even more so now that I look again. It is not a Red-Shouldered... and I don't see it as a Red-Tail....No belly band (typical of Red Tail at most any stage).... has the angry look, possibly thick leg areas and what appears to be the "cap" of a Coop with somewhat back-set eyes. ... Yep, that's my "final answer".... ALTHOUGH.... I am always ready to "stand corrected"!:eek3:

Sorry sandy this is not a gos or coopers hawk look at the shape of the body wide and heavy chested . First year redtails have a more definitive belly band some hardly any at all'.So many color morphs when you go west some redtails morph into really dark birds.Probably a first year bird it is looking right at the camera not too concerned. that's why a lot of passage birds dont make it they get shot .A haggard bird usally dont hang around to be shot at.Accipiters are really skittish and are hard to really get pictures of definetly not a short wing or accipiter. Oh by the way have been a falconer for over thrity years and have flown redtails, goshawks, coopershawk.Am currently flying a seven year intermewed gyrkin and perregrine Xgyr.

Sandy i looked at the picture again.Where is that long tail you would see on a accipiter? This bird has a short stubby tail.

Thanks Sandy and Kevin for trying to help me with this. This was from quite a ways away, and the hawk flew away before I had a chance to get closer and even observe it more. I've seen a lot of cooper's and broad-winged hawks, but I don't remember exactly how this hawk's size compared with those. Another possibility, could it be a broad-winged hawk?

Chris look at the bird a broad wing wouldn,t even be half the size of this bird .Look at the body characteristics .Definitely a buteo and the only two i am aware of in your area would be a redtail or broadwings.Hawks can be hard to identify especcially in flight the best way to narrow it down is body characteristics.Like I said have been flying raptors for along time.

Okay, Kevin. Looking again and comparing it to photos that I've taken of broad-wings, I see what you mean. I think I'll put this one down as a possible red-tail. Thanks.

I am still in the Coop Camp here.... Tail is obscured by the branches, can't tell the length of it compared to wing length...and can't see the legs. No way a RT would show that overall cinnamon breast pattern.... Beat me up... and I surely don't mind... :t3
Hawks here are EXTREMELY skittish (I live in the middle of NOWHERE!) RT's here never perch in the "bush". (Usually they are being pursued by our resident crows!) Posture for an RT is a bit "off" here too.
My Final, final answer: Coop.

Thanks Sandy. To tell you the truth, I'm not 100% convinced it's a red-tail. Personally I think there's a least a small chance it could be a cooper's or even a broad-wing, I don't know. I guess this is one of those ones that will just have to remain a mystery.

My gut says red-tailed. Suggestion: next time that you see this bird surrounded by all of that dark stuff dial in some underexposure :).

Since Artie brought us back here.... there is one question we forgot to ask: What date was the photo taken? It's quite difficult to determine size from a picture. I am not a falconer (but that would be way cool!) ... I do pretty much know my northern raptors tho! So, that said... I would call it about anything BUT a Red Tail....am leaning more to RSH right now. As an example of how a pic can be quite deceiving, check out this nest: http://www.mibirdingnetwork.com/view...hp?f=30&t=3850 I own this local Site so hope it's ok I posted a link... not competitive with BPN. Any guesses on what it is? (No cheating!)

This was taken middle of April (April 17,2012 to be exact). As you said, Sandy, I think the main problem here is that there really isn't anything in this picture to use for an accurate scale of the hawk's size, plus the hawk was quite far away and did not stay long enough for me to get a better photo. Here is the uncropped version of this photo.

Thanks, Christopher! Well MA in April is good for many hawk species in trees, including RSH (that's the only time I've seen them around the yard, in fact) .... with the full-size pic... hawk looks substantial, yet I still believe not RT in size. Blocky looking head and posture, and, we can't see much of other ID factors.... but, seems to be a bit of "fluff" on the legs..... sigh .... Coop or RSH for me still! He/she may remain a mystery! :e3
(Thanks for posting the full-size photo.... Some of my old cropped Sharpie pics make even them look HUGE!)