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Buteo jamaicensis
Red Tail Hawk
This looks like a juvenile Red-tailed Hawk. The tail is not red yet, but you can see all the stripes on the tail feathers, which indicates its a young bird.
Cornell Lab points out that most hawks you see along highways perched in trees or on wires are Red tailed hawks. That neat to know!
I think you are right it is a red-tailed hawk but not sure. Here is more info about them including their call which is the one they uses in all westerns and nature films that show romantic images of open prairies:
http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/red-t...