my money stays on the rear end….my money is on the front end.
my money stays on the rear end….my money is on the front end.
Speaking of barred secondaries….Barred secondaries = red-shouldered hawk. Not to mention (again) the dark throat.
What part of the wing are the “feather tracts” on…clearly not the primaries…..?You're looking at the wrong feather-tracts. Secondaries in those two photos are unbarred.
Note also the pale throat in both.
(As so often) I've no idea what you mean. See Topography - BirdForum OpusWhat part of the wing are the “feather tracts” on…clearly not the primaries…..?
If we put the “perspective element” to one side, after moulting and during, would not a juvenile’s prims.be shorter, totally ignoring the “front end” for the time being?... and the wings are actually longer than the tail
Ken, single pictures (these are all from the sam point of view) can be deceptive indeed, but I can not imagine how to turn the bird to lengthen the wings.If we put the “perspective element” to one side, after moulting and during, would not a juvenile’s prims.be shorter, totally ignoring the “front end” for the time being?
Not at all. You can't dismiss a feature just because it doesn't fit your pre-existing thesis. If a bird clearly has a feature which precludes it from being a certain species (secondary-barring is visible here in two photos) then it isn't that species - and you must look elsewhere for explanations of features which, though suggestive of that species, are inherently dubious.the wing barring is really of a secondary nature
Whether you mean here that the yellow base to the bill is long and narrow, or that the whole bill itself is long and narrow, that's wrong. Look again.yellow base to the bill (long and narrow)
Red-shouldered has large yellow cere where as Snail Kite juvenile has very small yellow cere not even visible on your second (not so good). picture.A question Tom, what are the odds of an “artefact” producing a “Snail Kite’s” head/bill on GM’s second image, you can clearly see the yellow base to the bill (long and narrow) much more so than any other raptor of the region?
FWIW Snail Kite is a Merritt Island speciality?
That to one side, what do you think?Red-shouldered Hawk is reported from 51.5% of eBird checklists at the Merritt Island NWR hotspot, while Snail Kite is reported from 0.39% of eBird checklists from the same hotspot.
And who knows what proportion of the Snail Kite reports were erroneous?Red-shouldered Hawk is reported from 51.5% of eBird checklists at the Merritt Island NWR hotspot, while Snail Kite is reported from 0.39% of eBird checklists from the same hotspot.
No, they're not particularly common there.FWIW Snail Kite is a Merritt Island speciality?
Interesting, on the web I found SK in bold type along with several other species, as being found in the Merritt Island area, no doubt not as numerous as RSH, with both being ticks if I ever get to Florida.No, they're not particularly common there.
...about the ID, Ken?That to one side, what do you think
They certainly occur there, but there not common and are far easier in other parts of the state.Interesting, on the web I found SK in bold type along with several other species, as being found in the Merritt Island area, no doubt not as numerous as RSH, with both being ticks if I ever get to Florida.
Cheers