ML617660943

Age

Not specified

Sex

Not specified

Observation details

Bird was perched on a mesquite along Bridge Rd. next to the golf course entrance. My observations were: all dark raptor with very small bill; white at base, yellow and then black tip. No light spots on the back like a Red-tailed. Wings were longer than the tail (a couple photos show that) which indicates Short-tailed or Swainson's with wide stripes and a light terminal band. Regretfully, I had pulled over and didn’t stay until the bird flew to get photos of the underwings and chest. Eric Kallen photographed the long-staying dark-morph Short-tailed Hawk that same morning flying over the east side of the cottonwoods which is basically a straight-line east from my sighting so was leaning to that for the ID. I had delayed adding this buteo to my checklist until I had the chance to consult with experts (got more feedback after posting it as Short-tailed). Without seeing the underside, different experts suggested dark-morphed Short-tailed or Swainson's: or a Zone-tailed as possible. Changed to buteo sp. since no strong conclusion.

Technical information

Model

DSC-RX10M4

Lens

8.8-220mm f/2.4-4.0

ISO

100

Focal length

220 mm

Flash

Flash did not fire

f-stop

f/4.0

Shutter speed

1/1000 sec

Dimensions

1107 pixels x 747 pixels

Original file size

103.62 KB