buckskin hawk
Oklahoma Birder
I had a Junco without a tail. No tail at all.
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Birds without tails (1 Viewer)
- Thread starter buckskin hawk
- Start date
TomSmith
Well-known member
There was a Great Tit without a tail in my garden all summer; I assumed it had lost it to a fox or cat. It couldn't fly properly - the best it could manage was to haul itself up into the air a few feet and throw itself at a target - but seemed to be managing okay. Not sure how it's doing now though (I'm away at college so haven't seen it for a while).
On-Firecrest
Stuck in a Rutt
it was pretty disturbing to see a long tailed tit with no tail, made me do a double take
:eat:
:eat:
tim.birdboy
Well-known member
I've seen an entirely tail-less Brown-headed Cowbird, a half-tailed Mourning Dove, and a male Barn Swallow missing one of its outer rectrices.
buckskin hawk
Oklahoma Birder
I haven't spotted the Junco again. I would speculate that he lost his tail to an avian preditor or perhaps one of the coyotes.
buckskin hawk
Oklahoma Birder
I saw the Junco again. It was feeding on the ground right outside my window so I was able to take a closer look. Its tail was shorter than the wing tips but it did have a tail. Perhaps it is growing back.
birdpotter
Well-known member
it might be a good time for a moult for the Junco.
citrinella
Well-known member
When we are ringing it is not too unusual to find a bird (adult) with a tail that appears to have been replaced completely suggesting it had lost it's tail.
Most, maybe all, of the species we see moult their tail feathers sequentially, so the new feathers grow in at different times. Some birds show barring - marks caused by transient nutrient deficiency - right across all tail feathers (commonly seen in juveniles) suggesting they have grown all their tail feathers at the same time.
Many individuals lose a tail, partially or completely, and regrow it without futher mishap.
Mike.
buckskin hawk
Oklahoma Birder
This is very interesting because I got a great look at him again just a foot or two from my dining room window. His tail appears to be growing back and is still shorter than his wing tips.
Interesting information on the tails.
Interesting information on the tails.
Nutcracker
Stop Brexit!
it was pretty disturbing to see a long tailed tit with no tail, made me do a double take
:eat:
Same for me once with a Magpie with no tail - looked reet weird! :-O
It was perched on a busy suburban railway line, so I think I know how it lost its tail . . .
