What kind?


Tominator

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well, it's another one of my hobbies--birdwatching that is.

that could be anything, how big are they? are they screaming like hawks? my guess would be ospreys. ospreys are a little bigger than the redtail, and they sound a little like a seagull.

do you have any water nearby, like a lake or resevoir?

the best field guide in my opinion is the Peterson Field Guide. it shows paintings of birds, where they're found, habitat, and songs, etc. they also have a section in the front of the book that shows hawk and hawk like birds' wing patterns as seen by an observer from the ground. i'd go get one, or search on ospreys at www.google.com

might also be a couple male harriers, which are not true buteos (hawks). harrier's wings are a little thinner than buteos'. the redtail is a buteo. look at those birds again, to they have a long tail and a white patch on the rump? if so, i think you're seeing male harrier hawks, but i'll stick with my original prediction--ospreys

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Re: What kind?

man, another clue. yeah, i've seen osprey's pick at their feet sometimes. do they have fish in them?

does it look like they're fighting or something in the air? like flipping upside down?

now i really think they're ospreys.

does the white patch on their wings resemble a big white circle, almost look like an eye? if so, those are ospreys i think.

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Re: What kind?

well, now you got me thinking it's something else. ospreys and eagles are bigger than red tails. their wingspan especially. bald eagles' wingspan is huge, like 7ft i think when mature.

do these have a short tail or long? kind of stubby like a redtail's or longer, like 7 inches or so?

now i'm thinking they might be male cooper's or sharpshinned hawks, but those are accipiters, not buteos. their tails are not stubby, they're kind of long, but the cooper's and sharpshinned hawks are smaller. these hawks are smaller than red tails.

scroll down a little on this page, nice picture of a sharp shinned in flight

http://www.buteo.com/sharpie.html

this site is awesome, although it lists North Dakota hawks. scroll down a bit to see good pictures of 11 types of hawks and eagles. then it continues to list falcons and then a "how to distinguish" section.

http://www.npwrc.usgs.gov/resource/othrdata/hawks/hawks.htm

i'm really curious to know bud. let me know when you find out. maybe pm or e-mail me.

[ 06-04-2003, 01:13 PM: Message edited by: Tominator ]

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