ML120441301

Age and sex

Juvenile, Unknown sex - X

Observation details

Initially we spotted few blue-bulls on the forest side and then we heard calls of Large Grey Babblers (LGBs). Since Johnathan and Stephanie had not seen LGB yet we thought of walking and stopping on mounds to scan the call direction. We didnt spot the LGBS but we spotted a Bay-back Shrike, Shikra, treepie and further away bigger than the Shikra was a Bird of Prey that Johnathan spotted. I could not see the Bird of Prey clearly but one of the prominent feature was the head. It had a stark white face with black mask (typical in many Falcon species). The front was heavily streaked and the back was coffee or blackish with faint white spotting. It was smaller and different than a Peregrene but looked bigger than a Hobby. Also a treepie was perched on a smaller tree further ahead of the Falcon, the distance between them could have been approximately 50 to 60 ft and the treepie appeared to look smaller than the Falcon. I initially thought it to be Hobby but was not sure and I thought Hobby was the same size as Shikra. Johnathan mananged to get some record shots and only when he showed to Lokesh, an experienced bird guide at Bharatpur, we found out that it was indeed a Eurasian Hobby. Thanks Lokesh for the id confirmation. Later checked on www.orientalbirdimages.org and found out that the plumage is similar to that of a juvenile. The sighting of this species is probably second for me. Photocopyright goes to Johnathan and thanks to Lokesh for identification.

Technical information

Dimensions

576 pixels x 1024 pixels

Original file size

74.37 KB