I don't have the book you're referring to yet, but had a very good look at
the bird. It looks like the picture of the Harlan's red-tailed hawk in the
Natl. Geo guidebook. It's an adult. Salient points include the overall
dark grey'brown color with an interesting pattern of mottled whitish tips on
the belly and some of the wing feathers that I would be hard-pressed to
describe if it didn't look exactly like the picture. There was a little bit
of whitish feathers behind the ear and just below the beak. The tail was a
dull white darkening to black-brown at the tip. Eyes were dark. The dark
morph of the rough-legged hawk looks too uniformly chocolate brown for this
bird, and has white above the beak rather than below. Plus the habitat
seems wrong - forest edge/ravine rather than open country. Of course, I'm
not at all a veteran hawk-watcher, so could easily be wrong. Is there any
other bird it could be if not a Harlans or a rough-legged hawk? - Teresa


>Teresa--

This is the time you're most likely to find a Harlans..they are
not common and perhaps even rare. We had an adult Harlans at
the Nisqually Refuge in Olympia last year..one or two usually
show up in the Hawk count at the Skagit..they are quite a
treat to see. I guess I've never heard of very many Harlans
showing up around here..and while I've not been keeping track,
I only have heard of fewer than a 1/2 dozen individuals on this
side of the mts in a season..

>Harlan's and comparisons with dark morph Rough Legs..
If you've really got a Harlan's you're lucky..
Is it an immature bird? (Clark & Wheeler can help with that
diagnosis..they do comparisons)

Tom