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Raptors from South Africa, Feb 2017 (1 Viewer)

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StevePreddy

Well-known member
I've just returned from my first trip to South Africa and have a few raptor identifications which I'd like a second opinion on, starting with this one from Kruger, which I think is an adult Tawny Eagle (plenty of other photos of it, in case other features are needed to confirm the ID).

Thanks
 
Next up, this one, also from Kruger, which appears to be an Ayres's Hawk Eagle, although that's supposed to be quite a tricky bird to catch up with in South Africa.
 

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And this last one for now, which I think is just a slim-looking juvenile Peregrine although Eleonora's did cross my mind.
 

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Tawny Eagle indeed, pale iris excludes Steppe
Booted Eagle, a rather heavily spotted indiviual of pale morph
and Peregrine indeed
 
Thanks Tom & Andy.

I agree with Andy on the eagle, though: having seen thousands of Booted Eagles in the Western Palearctic, this doesn't look like a Booted Eagle of any morph. A few more photos attached.
 

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Hi Steve, Raptors aren't really my thing, but I think with the Hawk-Eagle the only thing you need to worry about is if African Hawk-Eagle can look like that at a transitional age. No books here etc, but as I recall, I think your bird looks good for Ayres's. I saw one in the north of Kruger a few years ago, and recall being worried that the underparts weren't heavily streaked enough, but apart from that it looked bang on. I subsequently heard that there was one seen in the same area that day (which did indeed cause some excitement among a team of seasoned locals), and that the underpart streaking can be variable.
 
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StevePreddy said:
Thanks Tom & Andy.

I agree with Andy on the eagle, though: having seen thousands of Booted Eagles in the Western Palearctic, this doesn't look like a Booted Eagle of any morph. A few more photos attached.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the additional pictures, obviously Andy was right and the upperparts are all wrong for Booted, sorry, so Ayres's it is
 
Pale-morph Wahlberg's Eagle for this one?
 

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Two Lesser Spotted Eagles (If I haven't got these right, I clearly wasn't paying attention when 8000 of them flew over my head in Istanbul in 2015!)
 

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I'm torn between Lesser Spotted and Wahlberg's for this one. Any tips on telling these two apart when perched?
 

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