Carol, I would say that Red-tailed can come in exactly that color pattern. Try doing an online search for "Red-tailed Hawk rufous morph."

Dennis Paulson
Seattle


> On Feb 22, 2024, at 7:21 PM, Tom and Carol Stoner <tcstonefam at gmail.com> wrote:

>

> I am not good with hawks beyond the common ones in our area. My default is Red-tailed unless I have clear field marks that suggest otherwise. North of Marysville on I-5 today I got a glimpse of a dark hawk with a deep rust breast and a dark brown-black belly band and wings. I didn't see any light colors in my brief glimpse. Do Red-tails come in that kind of plumage? The picture in Sibley that most resembled the bird I saw was a Ferruginous Hawk, but that seems highly unlikely.

>

> Any thoughts?

>

> Carol Stoner

> West Seattle

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