Saturday, September 29, 2007

Juvenile Broad-winged Hawk at Funk's Grove

Juvenile Hawk, formerly thought to be a Sharp-shinned but now known to be a juvenile Broad-winged (please see comments below for an explanation). He is eating a large bug, possibly a praying mantis. I hope he has learned to hunt other prey, as those bugs will be gone before long and he has to feed himself this winter. If you click on the bottom photo to see the larger picture, you will see that there are little heart shapes on his legs, making it look like he's wearing valentines boxers or pantaloons!
 

 

 
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2 comments:

Anonymous said...

appears to be a nice juv. Broad-wing

Anonymous said...

Hi Jane - I agree that it is a juvenile Broad-winged Hawk, but a more heavily streaked individual than usually seen (even in field guides!). The tail pattern can be seen in 1 pic - a few dark bands, with last one widest. The tail is not long enough for an accipiter, and other subtle aspects of its structure say 'buteo', albeit a small one.