ID of hawk, pls.
Outdoor Ontario

ID of hawk, pls.

baywatch

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Could someone please help me ID this hawk seen at  Ashbridges Bay at Lake Ontario? Thanks in advance. :)

-Baywatch

« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 07:00:00 PM by baywatch »


Napper

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Hey!

welcome to the forum!!

I'm leaning towards Norther Goshawk immature

Note the  undertail coverts are marked

 I can't see its head clearly.

Napper:) anymore images?
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 07:00:00 PM by Napper »
Interesting site you should check out is https://spaceweather.com/
flkr...http://www.flickr.com/photos/36614671@N06/   Recent updates 2017 old pics
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baywatch

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Thanks, Napper.
I'll take a look to see if I can find any more pix that show head more clearly.
Baywatch
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 07:00:00 PM by baywatch »


Bluffs Birder

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If you want my 2 cents, I would say that your bird is a juvenile Cooper's Hawk.  First off, it shows an overall orange-buff to the side of it's head whereas a Goshawk would usually just have it on it's cheek.  Secondly, it's 'white' breast/belly has fairly short thin dark streaks whereas the breast/belly of a juvenile Gos would be buffy (yellowish-brown) with long thick dark streaks and the underside of the wings would also be buffy in colour.  I think the length of the tail feathers is right for a Cooper's aswell.

Any comments for or against are always welcomed...I'm learning too.

Walter :)
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 07:00:00 PM by Bluffs Birder »


baywatch

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Hi Walter,
Thanks ever so much for your 2 cents' worth! All opinions sought! I haven't the faintest idea about this bird. I have read that the accipiters are very hard to ID, even for the very experienced hawkers. I'll take another look at the Cooper's again in the books. Thanks for the suggestion.
Yours,
Baywatch :D
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 07:00:00 PM by baywatch »


amblesidebirder

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Great capture. I'm also leaning towards Cooper's Hawk, however I can't say 100%. It can be very tricky IDing accipiters from a single picture. I feel much more comfortable if I am able to observe the bird in person.

Just to let you know how hard it can be, this is taken right out of the Peterson's Advanced Birding Guide

"The need for caution:
As recently as the late 1970's some ornithologists were still insisting that accipiters could not be identified in the field, because it appeared that each well-known field mark was subject to variations or exceptions. This extreme view has been altered by further study of identification but the need for caution is still apparent. Accipiters can be named with confidence only if several different field marks are seen well. No single field mark is fool proof by itself. No expert can name every bird seen - some views of accipiters are just too brief or too distant. The real expert knows when to say "I don't know."

The value of experience:
Use of shape and flight style (adding up to the "jizz" , or "gestalt" ) As field marks demands some comparative experience. If you can get to one of those favored spots on a coast, lakeshore, or ridge where raptors concentrate in migration, study as many accipiters as you can, constantly analyzing and refining your impressions. But when you try to use these characters elsewhere, remember that the surroundings can have an effect."
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 07:00:00 PM by amblesidebirder »
Happy Birding,

Les Lee (West Vancouver)
www.birdtrekkerbc.wordpress.com


baywatch

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Thanks ever so much, Les.
I'm so thrilled to be getting help and joyous input from my fellow bird lovers. This is the first time I've ever been on any board, and I'm wondering why it took me so long to hook up with folks who love the same stuff I do.
I take your words of advice about knowing when to say "I don't know" very seriously. I'll have to get out on to one of those windy ridges Peterson talks about and start hawk watching myself.
Thanks again. :D
(BTW...I'm sick with envy that you live in Ambleside....it just might be the very best community in all of Canada.)
Yours,
Margaret
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 07:00:00 PM by baywatch »


Bluffs Birder

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Hi Margaret,

If you are interested, our local 'windy ridge' is just east of Ashbridge's Bay high atop the Scarborough Bluffs.  Fellow birder BIGFRANK runs a Raptor Watch each fall at Rosetta McClain Gardens.  The park is located on the southside of Kingston Rd just east of Birchmount Rd.  Anywhere from 4000 to 6000 birds of prey are counted each season as they migrate along the north shore of Lake Ontario.  During the migration period 15 different species can be observed.  I've attended the last 2 years and have learned much about raptors and how to identify them, BIGFRANK runs a very novice friendly Watch and is always willing to teach what he knows.  The RMG Raptor Watch website is http://raptorwatch.blogspot.com/.  There are lots of excellent photos of the birds seen over the years and the stories are endless!!!

There are also many other amazing Watch sites in the GTA and along the shores of Lake Ontario and Lake Erie.  You're never too far from a 'windy ridge'.

Happy Birding
Walter  :)
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 07:00:00 PM by Bluffs Birder »


Napper

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Quote from: "Bluffs Birder"
If you want my 2 cents, I would say that your bird is a juvenile Cooper's Hawk.  First off, it shows an overall orange-buff to the side of it's head whereas a Goshawk would usually just have it on it's cheek.  Secondly, it's 'white' breast/belly has fairly short thin dark streaks whereas the breast/belly of a juvenile Gos would be buffy (yellowish-brown) with long thick dark streaks and the underside of the wings would also be buffy in colour.  I think the length of the tail feathers is right for a Cooper's aswell.

Any comments for or against are always welcomed...I'm learning too.

Walter :)


Margaret! I thinky Walter is entirely correct.!  It just took me a couple of days.

The Goshawk is very large robust hawk, its head size and shape is very distinctive..

Napper:))
« Last Edit: December 31, 1969, 07:00:00 PM by Napper »
Interesting site you should check out is https://spaceweather.com/
flkr...http://www.flickr.com/photos/36614671@N06/   Recent updates 2017 old pics
You know your getting old when.....wait, what?