Red-tailed Hawk Taking Flight photo by Larry Jordan
I caught this Red-tailed Hawk taking off from its perch, or should I say it caught me taking its photo and took off. The easiest way to ID a Red-tailed Hawk from below is the dark bar at the fore edge of the wing. The adult will also show a light chest with a dark belly band like this bird.
But the best way to be sure of the ID is when the Red-tailed Hawk banks enough to see the top of its tail. It then becomes obvious.
Have a wonderful Thanksgiving and a great Skywatch Friday! Go see the other great sky photos too!
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An impressive bird! I actually really like the taking-off shot – it’s legs look so powerful.
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Simply fantastic shots of the Red tailed Hawk…we have some here I keep trying to get closer to for a better photograph..seldome succesful..as they are rather shy.
Eaglesbrother
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Cool shots! I like how red-tails give the appearance of having landing gear.
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Happy Thanksgiving. Great shots of the Red tailed hawk.
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Great shots! Happy SkyWatch 🙂
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Beautiful shots . Happy Thanksgiving
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Fantastic ‘In Flight’ shots!
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Impressive shots of hawk and the skies.
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You can really get a sense of his impressive wingspan at this angle! His body looks puny in comparison.
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Congratulations on these shots…not an easy task. Very nice captures.
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He’s gorgeous!
Congrats on these beautiful shots!
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Hawks and sky go together . Very nice
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Hi Larry,
I’m so envious of your raptor pictures. I’ve almost never been able to get one, even of the common raptors in France. I guess one has to know them a bit to get these nice shots like yours!
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Really cool photo and thanks so much for the birding tips, they’re very, very helpful.
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These really are fantastic shots and I love the one of the hawk taking off! I am quite envious that you are able to get such wonderful shots of birds in flight. I’ve been trying to get a good shot of two eagles that fly over our house from time to time, but I haven’t figured out the right settings to have my camera on, so they are always just a little blurry. I’m wondering if I need a different lens too. Anyway, I am determined to get a good shot of them someday! 🙂
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Were these shots captured at your home? If so quite jealous.
Heather and I went birding along the levees on Sunday and saw quite a few red-tailed hawks. Just love them!