next message in archive
no next message in thread
previous message in archive
Index of Subjects
All: As others have concluded, the photos of a hawk obtained by Marilyn O'Brien near Atntigonish and posted by Randy Lauff show it to be stocky buteo, and it is, in fact, an adult or near-adult BROAD-WINGED HAWK. This species has been increasingly regular here in early winter, but not many are seen after December. To demonstrate its i.d. I have posted a collage of two of the images on NS-RBA photos, under the raptors file. They have been brightened, upixellated, and sharpened, and the wash of false blue - typical of underexposed images - has been eliminated. The two major tail bars of BWHA, although obscured by bad lighting and branchlets, are good for that species. Note also the soft brown and rather rounded, almost puffy head, and especially the narrow flank barring - good for Broad-winged and Red-shouldered, but not Red-tailed. (I can't restore the reddish-brown hue of these bars, which was lost in the dim light.) The Red-shouldered any late immature or adult stage has much white checkering on flight feathers and at least a hint of russet on the wings, even in dim light. This one has all dark wings and the scattered pale feathering found on the mantles of many Broad-winged, but nothing like the marks of Red-shouldered. Everything is right about these images for Broad-winged, and nothing against that i.d. Cheers, Ian Ian McLaren
next message in archive
no next message in thread
previous message in archive
Index of Subjects