Okay, you real bird experts…I need help.
A few minutes ago the above hawk flew in and paused a moment in the big box elder tree near the door. I was sitting at my writing desk finishing up a column, grabbed the camera I always keep handy, and managed to squeeze off only a few frames before the bird departed.
The image above—cropped from the original—is the best of the lot…and I'll be the first to admit as a diagnostic portrait, it isn't much good. Certainly not good enough that I can be sure of calling it right. (The pix should enlarge when you double-click—not that a bigger view helped me much.)
It was definitely one of the buteo species, large and typically bulky. I'd say—having seen numerous Cooper's hawks in the same tree—an overall length of 20 inches. The eye was definitely red rather than yellow. The feather coloration was quite reddish, as you can see in the photo. The tail was as oddly short as it appears.
My best guess is a red-shouldered. Somehow it just didn't quite look like a red-tailed, though I'd be hard-pressed to explain why. And it seemed a bit too burley for a broad-winged, and too reddish. But I'd like to know what you think.
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18 comments:
I got nothin', but man.... is he cool.
Robin…
Yup, a neat big hawk…but which hawk? I'm really just guessing at red-shouldered. Thank you, though. (Bet you're starting to get busy in the garden center.)
I'll weigh in on the red-shouldered idea.
Deb
Debbie...
That's my best guess, too, but I don't see many red-shoulders around here. And I'm in no way an expert birder. Thank you for the vote; maybe I called it right.
Aren't hawks the hardest?!
I did a post about them, but I'm no expert. I have a couple of helpful links there, as well as feedback from some treasured naturalist expert friends!
In these times, I'm finding that many bloggers are reporting new birds in old areas, or, well, you know what I mean! We've had an amazingly gentle winter here in S. Ontario. Mind you 12 cm snow last night, after a near total meltdown. Best of luck!
I'm definitely not a Raptor expert but I'd go along with the Red-shoudlered Hawk ID on this bird. About the only feature that you can see in addition to the coloring is the length of the wings that are slightly shorter the the tail along with your size estimate. Greater capture.
Wish this would appear in the UK - I wouldn't mind what it was it is just so beautiful.
Jenn…
Our unseasonably mild winter has been almost spooky—practically no winter at all. Bet we'll have a serious tick season.
Of the larger species, I see red-tail hawks just about every day, and Cooper's almost as often. But red-shouldered are not so common, and then, I'm more apt to see one on the wing. I'm at best a mediocre birder. I have plenty of reference books, and can certainly dredge up hundreds of pix on the Internet for comparison…but sometimes (this case being one) I still can't decided.
Richard…
You're sure better than me! I appreciate the feedback.
I regularly see red-tails, and in all color phases—from nearly black to pale buff. I've even seen an all white one some years ago. Red phase red-tails, too. But this bird just looked smaller—though not by much—and a bit differently formed than a red-tail. The stubby tail, which I expect has lost feathers for whatever reason, wasn't much longer than an owl's. The overall coloration was pretty much exactly like the photo.
One of the Cooper's who comes around nearly every day often sits on the same limb, so I think the size guess is pretty close. Red-shouldered is all I can figure…but my whole line of reasoning is still just guessing.
Weaver…
I didn't used to care much about knowing the names of things ("a rose by any other name would smell as sweet…") but nowadays, I want that tag. I still don't keep formal lists—though sometimes a seasonal, area, or trip list—but I'm really curious about this truly pretty hawk.
(Bet you're starting to get busy in the garden center.)
~You have no idea.... ")
Robin…
Probably not…but I can imagine from here until the end of June will be a zoo. Just take care of yourself.
I have become pretty attuned to birdsong, and I am hearing some that I've never heard before. Even the family of Starlings at work (I remember the first two... I guess their grandparents) are coming up with some really beautiful riffs.... as if they've met some new species along their winter path.
Much as I've not wanted 'winter' this year, it's all kind of creepy.
Robin…
A memorably mild winter such as we've just had can certainly have an effect on various birds. A lot of this has to do with available food. Species that would usually go south, because snow and ice normally prevents them from finding sufficient food, might instead winter over, or at least not be forced to go so far away. They might also return earlier. And it tends to encourage them to expand their northward range, so you end up seeing—and hearing—birds you've heretofore not had hanging around. Too, the same species often have different songs, or at least different dialects, from place to place. If your usual residenteers move farther north, and the gap is filled in by birds (same species) which typically summered 200-300 miles south, you might hear a regional variation in their songs. And I suppose some birds simply learn new tunes, reflecting what they've recently heard…though I'm not sure I've ever read anything in this regard one way or the other.
Count me in as feeling unsettled about our lack of winter. I always look forward to winter…but when this one hadn't made it by the end of January, I felt stood up and out of the mood and just wanted spring to come early. Which has truly been the case. And as nice as that has been, I have to think that it's not only a bit weird, but also that there is no "free lunch." Paybacks are a'comin'! Right off the bat I predict a humdinger of a tick year. And that may be the least of it.
...I'd go with Red-shouldered too, Grizz. I love the coloring! We have one every now and then in our yard. Now that I think of it, I haven't seen him in our yard all winter (seems funny to write "winter!" It's been so warm).
Thank you for your response. I love the fact that birds have different dialects.
As for 'paybacks'... I remember far too well the summer of 1995.... and the heat wave that killed nearly 900 people, and I and my dog remained safe because we were in a tiny part of our (archaic) electric grid that maintained power and so had air conditioning.
If we are in this pattern now.... there's no telling where it's going to go.
Kelly…
Thank you for responding. This hawk has been a puzzle to me. If it is, indeed, a red-shouldered (and the more I look at the photo, poor as it is, the more I think that has to be the identity) then it's the first-ever for my riverbank list. I have red-tailed fairly regularly, and of course Cooper's almost daily—but never before a red-shouldered.
The bird's red color was truly lovely. I have no idea how to account for the stubby tail, but it was much shorter than it should have been.
It does, for sure, seem weird calling whatever we've been through "winter." Certainly not winter by my lifetime of Ohio standards—not even a "mild" winter. More like a "non-winter." And the rest of this week is supposed to be in the mid-70˚s! Amazing.
Robin…
I really don't know what to expect this year when it comes to any subsequent effects of our overly mild winter. Certainly many of the insects which usually die off due to freezing, didn't. So I expect an increase in pests such as ticks. Wild bees ought to have had better than typical survival rates, too. And in fact, the list is practically endless. So it could be a "buggy" year for both good bugs and bad bugs. As to weather? Whether a mild winter means a hot summer, I'd say likely hotter and dryer than normal…but by how much? Again, I can only speculate.
I know I have dozens of flowers now in bloom. Wildflowers are starting to pop. The fish are biting like it was May. And the red-winged have been back since late-February.
Now, birds…
That birds have dialects, regional variations to their songs, comes as a surprise to many—especially when you can see the bird singing, but the song doesn't fit the pattern you expect. You begin to suspect your memory or sanity. At least I do.
There's also some evidence that certain noisy urban areas influence the songs of certain species—causing them to drop more subtle notes or phrases from their song. Not as far-fetched as you might imagine when you consider young birds learn their songs by ear, and if a youngster can't listen well, can't hear what they're listening to, they end up singing only the parts they do hear clearly.
In the end, though, it is not so much the song sang, but what we bring to the equation…the song heard. To that, I've always liked this proverb:
"If you listen to the thrush and hear a thrush, you've not really heard the thrush. But if you listen to a thrush and hear a miracle…then you've truly heard the thrush."
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