Need a location first. Was it just seen or is this photo old? Also, some additional info about the hawk's behavior would be helpful, i.e. what it was doing here, whether you frequently see it, anything (note- it's NOT a Cooper's for sure).

Red-tailed is ruled out (too much chest streaking). The malar marks made me think Swainson's briefly, but the upperwing markings are not consistent with that species (it would be a juvenile bird).

Leaning juvenile Red-shouldered Hawk. Give me a location and I'll confirm and support my ID for your future reference.

This post was edited by TMFF on Mon, Jun 24, 13 at 15:46

Also, feel free to post another photo or two. Could prove helpful. Juvenile hawks can be tricky when key field marks cannot be seen.

The pictures were taken outside of Austin, Texas, yesterday, June 23, 2013. It just landed on the bird bath, drank and watched the squirrels and few other birds that ventured to our feeders. For some reason, I figured it must be a juvenile because it showed little interest in all of the furry food running around our yard. I posted the pictures on facebook and got a lot of URLs with similar looking birds....but it really looked like a juvenile Cooper's.
I'm not sure what you mean by supporting your ID for future reference,

Forgot to mention that it stood in the bird bath for about 30 min and then flew up to the squirrel corn-feeder in the tree behind the bath and stood there another 30 min or so. Then it just flew off. Stopped by today again, but only spend about 10 min. and left.

This is a back view I took today. Note--the photos are through our window.

This is a front view of the hawk.

A different side view.

Last one. We thought it was funny because at times the hawk and squirrel were really staring at each other.

Holy moly! Great pictures! I can confirm the ID of juvenile Red-shouldered Hawk. What I meant about "support my ID...." is that I'll give you the reasons behind my ID in hopes that it is helpful for you down the road (should you encounter another hawk).

This is positively a Buteo. A Cooper's Hawk is a species of Accipiter, which are smallish, typically slender hawks with long banded tails. In an Accipiter, the wing tips are significantly shorter than the tail tip. The bird here shows wing/tail tips fairly close in length. It is a large and bulky bird and is definitely a Buteo. (Also, the tail banding is narrower than what you'd find in a Cooper's Hawk. Coops have thick, wide and fewer bands, even as juvies)

In Austin, Texas, in summer, your Buteo options are: Red-tailed, perhaps White-tailed, Red-shouldered, Zone-tailed, Harris's, Broad-winged, and Swainson's. That's a lot of variety for one area.

However, your backyard birdbath options are limited. It's not too unusual for a Red-tailed to do this, but it is more common to find a Red-shouldered doing this. Most of the other species are scarcer and have preferred habitat that will not take them that close to humans. (Cooper's Hawks are commonly found in yards but I've ruled out Cooper's.)

Now the fine details. Notice this bird has some barring on its flight feathers (wings) that show a warm copper hue. It looks almost like striping. This is found on Red-shouldered Hawks of all ages and translates into the famous translucent "crescent" when the bird spreads its wings in flight. This heavy wing barring rules almost everything else out. Also, the malar marks (stripes on sides of chin) are often found on Red-shouldered Hawk juveniles. The chest streaking pattern starts at the neck as streaks but the streaks take on a "heart" shape pattern as they proceed down to the belly- also a Red-shouldered mark.

Red-shouldereds commonly prefer to eat reptiles and amphibians in the warm season, so perhaps your bird just wasn't interested in the feathered or furry options.

If you continue to have any questions about this ID, feel free to ask and I'll give you the info you need. I know I covered a lot, but I left out some things as well. If you'd like further proof it's a Red-shouldered Hawk, just say so and I'll find some photos/links etc to share to help you see what I've learned about hawk ID through the years.

Great pics! Nice bird.

This post was edited by TMFF on Mon, Jun 24, 13 at 18:03

Thanks so much. We are interested in what birds feed here because they're entertaining and we spend a fortune on our "non-pets." Also, this area of Texas is still in a drought and we had the horrid Labor Day Complex Fires almost two years ago--which stopped about 3/4 of a mile behind our home. So, we're doing our best to feed and water the wildlife that we can help. However, our real knowledge is what we glean from books, Google, and facebook friends. So, you have really helped to educate a lot of people today. Thanks again.

Yep, it's juvenile red-shouldered hawk. That lighter coloring toward the tips of its wings is a dead giveaway. Plus, I'm just north of you in Killeen/Fort Hood area and have been seeing a few of them lately. The hot, dry weather has been a killer for us all! Thanks for your help to care for your local wild non-pets! I remember those fires in Bastrop, if that's what you're referring to. They were absolutely horrible!! We had fires here too. At one point there were fires burning in all directions.
But with fire comes new life and new growth.