Beginner My hawk in the moult.

Agreed, impressively detailed close up and I live the side on perspective showing the aggressiveness of it's profile.
 
wezza13 said:
I presume it's a Harris Hawk?

Nice portrait, Roy (y)
Click to expand...

I thought that at first - a US import ..... but then I changed my mind

here's "mine" from SA - used for pest control by a local, (so he says)

The last time I saw it, it was chasing a "white van" down the road ....... had some ladders on top!!!

HH_1.jpg



HH_2.jpg
 
Last edited:
That's a young bird mines 30 years old and still hunting.
 
Royroy1111 said:
That's a young bird mines 30 years old and still hunting.
Click to expand...

but is it a Harris Hawk, (I see it is now I have had a look around), ............. from where Roy? the US

They are sometimes reported in Europe ........ but maybe escapees?


can you ID this for me Roy?

Raptor.jpg
 
Last edited:
Mines from one of the first imported pairs into this Country(uk) from California.
 
Royroy1111 said:
Mines from one of the first imported pairs into this Country(uk) from California.
Click to expand...

Thanks Roy .. must be quite a responsibility owning a bird like that .. do you have a transmitter on it, just in case it fly's away?

The guy in S Africa seemed to "lose" his quite a lot of the time ...... his bird was from the US, maybe it was trying to get back there!!!
 
Last edited:
I have trackers for my Peregrine and my Harris but only need it for the Harris if she's on a kill,she perfect after 30 years more obedient than my dogs,lol.Tracker every time when I go out .
 
BillN_33 said:
but is it a Harris Hawk, (I see it is now I have had a look around), ............. from where Roy? the US

They are sometimes reported in Europe ........ but maybe escapees?


can you ID this for me Roy?

Raptor.jpg
Click to expand...


I wondered if it was a Ferrugenous Hawk (going purely on the rusty crop/bib) but a quick Google image search told me I was wrong!
 
Bill, could your mystery raptor be a Steppe Hawk - a subspecies of Buzzard (Buteo buteo Vulpinus). I know you've spent time in SA and so do these!
 
Nod said:
Bill, could your mystery raptor be a Steppe Hawk - a subspecies of Buzzard (Buteo buteo Vulpinus). I know you've spent time in SA and so do these!
Click to expand...

Thanks Nod, yep we spend up to a couple of months in S Africa each year - this was an injured bird, (so it would be a native), being looked after by the local rescue centre - I have emailed them to ask what it is but they have not replied. I would have known at the time but my memory these days is not what it was.

I think that I looked at Steppe Hawk, (Steppe Buzzard?? again quite common), because it was a sub of Buzzard and there are lots of Jackal Buzzards out there, but I think the eye colour put me off - I'll have another look ... thanks again

But as this S African guys says,

"Peter Steyn quips that the Steppe Buzzard should be called the 'fingerprint buzzard' because no two birds are exactly alike. It breeds in the Russian Steppes and although it is usually a solitary bird, it flies south in groups of up to 100, following the escarpment and Lebombo mountain range into South Africa"

S Africa - wish i was back there - got to wait until next January!!
 
Last edited:
The whole species of Buzzard seem to be among the most variable in terms of colour, even over here (UK) they're fairly diverse. Pretty sure I've got a shot of one in Crete with the very reddy brown chest as showing in your shot. Then, of course, there's also the possibility of it being a hybrid with some (?escapee?) Steppe Buzzard in its ancestry!
 
Really like the side on perspective of the original shot - very effective.
 
Sorry, Roy, got fixated on Bill's "mystery" bird rather than yours!

Caught it well. She looks to be fixed on something and you can almost feel her trying to take flight (or start running!) in pursuit.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top