Know this is an old post. But the recent comment I got below added to my own questioning of the original ID. What do you think?
Songo Blue Skies
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
Awesome Hawk!
I got out to the Community Gardens at Floyd Bennett Field about 8:00 on Saturday morning. I seemed to be the only one there. As I got out of the car there were phoebes, kinglets and yellow rumps flying and diving everywhere for yummie bugs. It was a very birdie day. When I came around the first corner I saw something on a fence in the back part. To be honest I thought it might be one of those fake owls at first, but it soon became apparent that it was something living and breathing. It was this beautiful hawk. I was lucky to get a picture of it from its back side as well after in flew up into a tree. The almost tear dropped feathers on his chest were beautiful. I believe this is a juvenile Northern Goshawk. I identified it by several factors. I could see the white stripe over it's eye especially apparent in the second picture. It's bill was two toned and his tail was striped. Life bird! There are a few rats that live in and forage in the gardens. Prey.
Know this is an old post. But the recent comment I got below added to my own questioning of the original ID. What do you think?
Know this is an old post. But the recent comment I got below added to my own questioning of the original ID. What do you think?
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5 comments:
Gosh-that's not a very easy hawk to identify in that phase.I'll have to be more careful when looking at other hawks like Cooper's Hawks. Congratulations on that one.
Thanks Larry, I have to say I eliminated more of what it was not while actually in the field and I was lucky that it actually was perched there for a few minutes. I really looked at it in the photograph. That is what is nice about getting a photo you can study it more once out of the field.
Great photo and very useful for ID, but I'm going to have to offer a dissenting opinion on your identification. It is very rare to see a northern goshawk near, let alone within, an urban environment. Several things lead my mind to juvenile Cooper's Hawk. First of all the white supercilium line is very dull in your pictures. Also, the streaking on the breast does not extend through the belly. And the barring on the tail is very even. Goshawks have distinctly uneven barring on the tail, streaking throughout the underside, buffy coloration on the underside, and a fairly distinct white supercilium line. But keep an eye out next time you visit some core forest near NYC. They breed in various unfragmented forests near there.
Thanks for visiting my blog and leaving your helpful comment. I have been looking at this picture recently and actually questioning the ID also for many of the same reasons. The second picture led me to say it did have the white supercilium line. Also the even barring on the tail has bothered me more. I'm still learning the whole ID thing and when they are fall juveniles it is harder. I appreciate your thoughtful comment.
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