Common Raptor IDing

Many people would like to think that the birds they see soaring above them are Bald Eagles, though Turkey Vultures, Black Vultures, and Red-tailed Hawks are much more common. And since the birds are frequently pretty high up in the sky, you aren't necessarily going to get a really good look at them.

Here's sort of a beginner's guide to IDing these birds, where I'll stay away from the subtle points.

First up is a Turkey Vulture. Sometimes like in this picture you'll see a flash of their red heads, but even from much further away you can usually see pale feathers starting from the ends of the wings, going along the backs of the wings, finally ending at the body itself. In this picture the pale feathers contrast quite a bit from the dark feathers to look white; most of the time the difference in feathers is more subtle than this, though the outline is always there, and this unusual amount of contrast demonstrates it well.

February 1, 2022 at Duke Farms
Photo 184269057, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)


Compare this to their Black Vulture cousins. You'll never see the red head if it's a Black Vulture. And while they also display pale feathers on their wings, the pale feathers are all at the very ends of the wings.
December 22, 2021 at Duke Farms
Photo 174171905, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)


Next is an adult Bald Eagle. Compared to the vultures, the eagle has a white head/neck and tail. I guess there is a little paleness on the wings, but it's not at the ends of the wings (compared to the Black Vulture) let alone the ends of the wings going on to the body (compared to the Turkey Vulture). The Bald Eagle should also show a white tail (compared to the Black Vulture).
January 14, 2022 at Duke Farms
Photo 176184250, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)

Though we have quite a few hawks/falcons plus Ospreys, the Red-tailed Hawk is common enough that having some sense of what to look for is helpful. Mostly I'd look for a light colored raptor with a speckled belly band and a burnt orange tail. In this photo the tail doesn't really show the orange much but you should be able to spot the belly band. If you detect both of those, you've almost certainly got a Red-tailed Hawk.

March 5, 2022 at Duke Farms
Photo 186580965, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)



Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Northern Watersnake

Image
This April I went to Great Swamp National Wildlife Refuge with the hope (among other hopes) of seeing the Northern Watersnakes during mating season. There were 2 problems with this: I think it was slightly late in the season for this. The boardwalk trail where I had seen them in the past was partially closed due to repairs. So although I didn't see any of the 2+ intertwined snakes that I'd seen in the past, but there were still Northern Watersnakes warming themselves in the sun: April 13, 2023 at Great Swamp Photo 272117862, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC) And here's another one coming out of the water. April 13, 2023 at Great Swamp Photo 272119139, (c) jpviolette, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC)
Read more

Female Brown-headed Cowbird

Image
Like quite a few birds, this bird is easier to identify when spotted with her significant other ; she's a Brown-headed Cowbird . Due to their tendency to be monogamous plus plain old birds-of-a-feather behavior, I usually see them with prominently brown-headed males around, greatly improving my confidence in IDing them. My understanding is that Brown-headed Cowbirds are the only obligate brood parasites in my area. Obligate brood parasites have essentially lost all their parenting skills, and thus if they were ever unable to fool other birds into raising their young, they would (almost certainly) go extinct [1]. There are, however, other brood parasites in New Jersey. These are called facultative brood parasites, and these birds will usually raise their own offspring, but will also engage in brood parasitism. (Exactly when birds perform facultative brood parasitism seems variable; one source said it occurred when resources were scarce while another said it occurred when resource
Read more

Rooftop Turkey Vultures

Image
I met these Turkey Vultures by just walking out of my apartment. (I theoretically could have gotten a picture without going outside, but that extra layer of glass can degrade picture quality a little.) Although they don't show up on these rooftops daily, they're not an uncommon visitor to my apartment complex. Similar to this spot of the woods , I wouldn't expect this to be a great place to find carcasses. I'm thinking they're here mostly because: They don't have to worry much about predators up there. They get a pretty good view of the area in case something should happen to succumb. (This apartment was near the top of a hill, providing a better view than most of the other apartments.) Since this picture was from February, it's probably a slightly warmer spot, especially near those furnace vent pipes. Although these are Turkey Vultures, it's also not unusual to see Black Vultures up there too. February 28, 2023 at Finderne Photo 264703396, (c) jpviole
Read more