I asked GROK why the tail isn’t red in my photo. This was the answer:
The tail isn’t red because this is almost certainly a juvenile (immature) Red-tailed Hawk.
Why Juveniles Lack the Red Tail
Age-related plumage: Red-tailed Hawks do not acquire their signature brick-red tail until they are about 1–2 years old, during their first major molt into adult plumage. Juveniles (first-year birds) have brown tails with multiple dark horizontal bars/bands.
In your photo (taken from below while soaring), the tail shows this typical juvenile pattern — brownish with barring — rather than the solid or mostly rufous/red color of adults.This is one of the most reliable ways to age them in the field. Adults usually show a bright reddish tail from above (and often a paler reddish tone from below), though lighting, angle, and subspecies can affect how vivid it appears.
Photo information:
- Camera – Canon EOS Rebel SL3,
- Exposure – 1/400 sec.,
- Aperture – F7.1,
- ISO – 100,
- Focal Length – 155mm,
- Lens – Canon EF-S55-250mm f/4-5.6 IS STM.
