ML641984503

Poznámky

Vagrant continental European bird on mid-Atlantic island - Bird 2 in text

Podrobnosti k pozorování

2 very differently plumaged birds which, after correspondence with raptor expert Dick Forsman, are considered to be 'Continental'-type Common Buzzards of the nominate subspecies buteo, and not birds of the local Azores subspecies rothschildi. Bird 1: the darker of the 2 individuals, larger and longer-winged than the 2 local rothschildi birds which chased it off. Pale headed and pale chested but with warm pale brown breast sides, darkening towards tail, which was buffer in tone with narrow darker barring. No black carpal patches, but warm dark brown lesser underwing coverts and thick dark blackish-brown trailing edge to secondaries and tips to most primary tips on otherwise largely whitish underwing. Strikingly marked brown upperside with paler carpal bars and scapulars, dark brown flight feathers and dark-barred paler central tail feathers contrasting with dark outers. Dick Forsman commented: "Buteo1 looks to me like a Common Buzzard s.l. It is definitely a juv, as shown by tail-barring, pale iris, plumage wear above, etc. I am not sure which taxon of Common Buzzard it is, and I don't know juv rothschildi at all. To me it could even be a continental nominate buteo. The dark lesser underwing coverts and lack of dark carpal speak against LLB [Long-legged Buzzard, a possibility which I had asked him about], also the proportions are too plump for that species." He later added: "Taking everything into account, it looks to me like a B.buteo, not a juv rothschildi, but just a "Common Buzzard" from the European continent, OR IT COULD BE A HYBRID!" Bird 2: a strikingly white buteo, unlike any Azores rothschildi Common Buzzard I have ever seen. Aside from a dark throat patch, some isolated streaks on the underparts, dark patches towards the leading edge of the 'hands' and a dark trailing edge to the wing, this bird was largely white in appearance. Dick Forsman kindly also gave his view on this bird: "Buteo2 is definitely a juv continental buteo, a rather typical individual! These white ones are common in the N parts of C Europe: Germany, Denmark, S Sweden, Holland and in severe winters they move south to escape the worst conditions, but this one has made a long-jump." It is surely unprecedented for 4 large raptors - these 2 Common Buzzards ssp buteo, a Rough-legged Buzzard and a Black Kite - to appear in the same location on one Azorean island at the same time. Most, perhaps all, originated from continental Europe, and it seems likely they became caught up in a weather system that carried them out into the Atlantic and, ultimately, to Graciosa. The presence in the Azores during this trip of other scarce migrants and vagrants from Africa and Europe, including the 1st Woodchat Shrike for the islands and multiple Western House Martins and Common Swifts, suggest that many other species were also involved in the same weather event.

Další druhy

• Black Kite (Black) Milvus migrans [migrans Group]