Red-tailed Hawk Similar Species Comparison
Main SpeciesRed-tailed Hawk
Adult (borealis)
Large with a red tail. Mostly pale below, with a darker belly band, wing tips, and edges of the flight feathers. Head brown with a white throat.
© Jonathan Eckerson / Macaulay LibraryMassachusetts, February 18, 2017Adult (borealis)
Large with a red tail. Mostly brownish above with variable white in the wing coverts and lower back forming a pale 'V' on the upperwings. Eastern subspecies (borealis) tends to have plain red tail with neat black band near the tip.
© Brian Sullivan / Macaulay LibraryNew York, January 05, 2019Adult
When they detect prey on the ground, they glide or flap-and-glide downward, pushing their legs forward when nearing the prey and impaling it with their talons.
© Timothy Barksdale / Macaulay LibraryMissouri, January 01, 1999Not all videos have sound
Adult light morph (calurus/alascensis)
Western subspecies (calurus) differs in being more richly colored below on average, and more heavily-marked. The body plumage is polymorphic in the western subspecies, occurring in light (as here), intermediate, and dark morphs.
© Jerry Liguori / Macaulay LibraryUtah, October 13, 2009Adult light morph (calurus/alascensis)
The red tail is more obvious when viewed from above. Otherwise all dark brown with light barring in the flight feathers.
© Jerry Liguori / Macaulay LibraryUtah, September 26, 2012Adult
Soars with wings held in a shallow V and "fingers" spread. Stoops to the ground by tucking its wings into its body.
© Larry Arbanas / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, May 01, 2005Not all videos have sound
Adult dark morph (calurus/alascensis)
Some dark morphs are strongly reddish-brown below, especially on the chest.
© Jerry Liguori / Macaulay LibraryUtah, November 26, 2010Adult dark morph (calurus/alascensis)
Dark chocolatey-brown body and wing linings, with paler flight feathers lightly barred and contrasting with dark wing tips and edges to the flight feathers.
© Brian Sullivan / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, October 12, 2016Adult
Often perches motionless in trees along roadsides or slowly scans for prey from its perch.
© Benjamin Clock / Macaulay LibraryNew York, March 13, 2011Not all videos have sound
Adult light morph (abieticola)
Large with a red tail. Mostly pale below, with a heavy darker belly band. Dark wing tips and edges to flight feathers contrast with paler wings.
© Brian Sullivan / Macaulay LibraryOklahoma, March 01, 2012Adult dark morph (Harlan's)
Chocolatey-brown below, with lightly barred whitish flight feathers, dark wing tips and edges to the flight feathers, and a mostly whitish tail with a dark tip.
© Jerry Liguori / Macaulay LibraryUtah, February 08, 2008Adult
When hunting, often hangs in the air scanning for prey below; a behavior known as kiting.
© Timothy Barksdale / Macaulay LibraryTexas, February 01, 1997Not all videos have sound
Adult light morph (Harlan's)
Mostly pale below with a heavy dark belly band, dark wing tips and edges to the flight feathers, and dark tips to a white tail.
© Harold Ziolkowski / Macaulay LibraryMontana, March 12, 2020Adult dark morph (Harlan's)
Adult Harlan's tail pattern highly variable above, characterized by white, gray, and black mottling and longitudinal streaking. Some lack red altogether.
© Brian Sullivan / Macaulay LibraryOregon, February 18, 2011Adult (Krider's)
Subspecies characterized by extremely lightly-marked underparts with faint patagial mark (often rufous toned) and faint to absent belly band.
© Brian Sullivan / Macaulay LibraryLouisiana, December 28, 2010Adult (Krider's)
Subspecies typically has rufous-toned upperparts with extensive white spangling, and whitish-based tail with red to pinkish tip.
© Brian Sullivan / Macaulay LibraryLouisiana, December 28, 2010Adult (costaricensis)
Birds in Costa Rica and Panama have rufous bellies and wing linings, pale flight feathers contrasting with dark wingtips and flight feather edges, and chocolatey-brown head and shoulders.
© Andrew Spencer / Macaulay LibraryAlajuela, February 27, 2013Juvenile light morph (calurus/alascensis)
Heavily streaked below, with bold barring on the wings, dark wingtips, and a lightly barred pale tail.
© Alex Lamoreaux / Macaulay LibraryIdaho, June 08, 2011Juvenile dark morph (calurus/alascensis)
Very heavily streaked below, with darkly checkered wing linings, boldly barred wings with dark wingtips, and a finely barred brown and white tail.
© Brian Sullivan / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, October 12, 2016Juvenile dark morph (Harlan's)
Very heavily streaked below, with darkly checkered wing linings, boldly barred wings with barred wingtips, and a finely barred brown and white tail.
© Brian Sullivan / Macaulay LibraryUtah, October 12, 2009Juvenile (Krider's)
Very pale, almost white head. Brown above mixed with white feathering, and finely barred wings and tail.
© Elizabeth Winter / Macaulay LibraryNebraska, November 27, 2017Adult (borealis)
Pale below with light reddish-brown streaking on the chest and a bold brown belly band. Head brown with some darker markings. Red tail often not visible on perched birds.
© Alex Lamoreaux / Macaulay LibraryPennsylvania, February 10, 2016Juvenile (borealis)
Pale below with a broad and bold brown belly band. Head brown mixed with white feathering. Tail barred brown and whitish.
© Jonathan Eckerson / Macaulay LibraryMassachusetts, April 29, 2016Juvenile (Krider's)
Juvenile Krider's is strikingly pale, with a mostly white head, white underparts with little or no breast streaking, and significant white on the dark upperparts.
© Tim Ray / Macaulay LibrarySouth Dakota, October 19, 2016Adult dark morph (calurus/alascensis)
Eats a wide variety of prey, including snakes, and occurs in many different habitats.
© Steve Valasek / Macaulay LibraryArizona, May 07, 2017Adult (borealis)
Often mobbed by smaller birds, especially during the nesting season.
© Ram Subramanian / Macaulay LibraryMassachusetts, April 14, 2017Habitat
Occurs in a wide variety of habitats, and often nests on or near cliffs.
© Adam Dudley / Macaulay LibraryNevada, June 01, 2016Similar SpeciesRed-shouldered Hawk
Adult (lineatus group)
Red-shouldered Hawks tend to be smaller than Red-tails with a banded tail and warm brown barring below unlike Red-tailed Hawks, which have a mostly unbanded tail and streaks (not barring) below.
© Chris S. Wood / Macaulay LibraryConnecticut, September 25, 2017Similar SpeciesSwainson's Hawk
Adult light morph
Light morph Swainson's Hawks have a dark flight feathers whereas all ages and morphs of Red-tailed Hawks have pale flight feathers.
© Steven Mlodinow / Macaulay LibraryColorado, May 31, 2017Similar SpeciesSwainson's Hawk
Adult dark morph
Dark morph Swainson's Hawks are more similar to Red-tailed Hawks, but their flight feathers still tend to be darker than Red-tails.
© Ed Harper / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, April 03, 2017Similar SpeciesTurkey Vulture
Adult (Northern)
From a distance a soaring Turkey Vulture might look like a Red-tailed Hawk, but Turkey Vultures have longer, more rectangular wings, which the birds hold above horizontal, forming an easily visible V. Turkey Vultures are also much less steady when they soar.
© Matt Davis / Macaulay LibraryCalifornia, January 01, 2017Rotate Your Device to Better Compare
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Species in This Family
Hawks, Eagles, and Kites(Order: Accipitriformes, Family: Accipitridae)
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