A Buzzard I saw today (1 Viewer)

West End Birder · Dec 7, 2013

Coming back along the A35 today (okay it was our Xmas party last night so maybe my eyes were not quite right!) I noticed a Common Buzzard (I assume) sitting on a fence post right by the roadside (I would say 500m south of the Cat and Fiddle Pub, on the north side, the fence is the boundary of the field that is a PYO in the summer).

I was really struck by how 'Arctic' it looked - whilst I have seen great colour variation in Common Buzzards I never remember seeing one quite so pale and with an all white chest.

I wish I could have stopped to get a better look.

Rob S

KenM · Dec 7, 2013

BD344 said:
Coming back along the A35 today (okay it was our Xmas party last night so maybe my eyes were not quite right!) I noticed a Common Buzzard (I assume) sitting on a fence post right by the roadside (I would say 500m south of the Cat and Fiddle Pub, on the north side, the fence is the boundary of the field that is a PYO in the summer).

I was really struck by how 'Arctic' it looked - whilst I have seen great colour variation in Common Buzzards I never remember seeing one quite so pale and with an all white chest.

I wish I could have stopped to get a better look.

Rob S

I believe extremely pale types as you have described, might well originate from Germany/Scandinavia.

Cheers

West End Birder · Dec 7, 2013

Ah, that's interesting thanks

eddy the eagle · Dec 7, 2013

Sorry I'm late on this one.Been trying to work out what PYO stands for,only just got it but I won't spoil it for others by printing it here....Eddy

MJB · Dec 7, 2013

KenM said:
I believe extremely pale types as you have described, might well originate from Germany/Scandinavia.

Cheers

Indeed. I've seen some in Brandenburg that seemed to emulate the general markings of Short-toed Eagle!:eek!:
MJB

West End Birder · Dec 7, 2013

Ah that'll be it then, as it was on the Hants / Dorset border it's probably been suppressed for a while ;-)

My first self found ;-)

By the way MJB, the White Cottage was very nice indeed

Farnboro John · Dec 7, 2013

KenM said:
I believe extremely pale types as you have described, might well originate from Germany/Scandinavia.

Cheers

I have found over the years that there are more pale types in the SW of Britain, but they can turn up anywhere. I think it would be a bold birder that attributed a geographical origin to any of them.

John

Andy Hurley · Dec 10, 2013

A few examples from near Paderborn, Germany:

Redshank3 · Dec 10, 2013

Farnboro John said:
I have found over the years that there are more pale types in the SW of Britain, but they can turn up anywhere. I think it would be a bold birder that attributed a geographical origin to any of them.

John

Having lived in Devon I completely agree: Watching the buzzards in spring breeding displays (and so presumably local birds) there were certainly some some very pale morphs present in the population there -some nearly as pale on wing patterns as the German photos posted by Andy Hurley.

Now I'm over in Northamptonshire I don't tend to see these paler individuals but that may simply be due to the reduced buzzard density here.

Tom

West End Birder · Dec 11, 2013

Andy that middle bird could be the one I saw - just like that

Boro Birder · Dec 11, 2013

I have never seen them so white has in Andys pictures, but do agree that the further south you go the paler they become, i was recently in the SW and spotted a Buzzard with so much white in it i thought it was a different species.

A Buzzard I saw today (1 Viewer)

More options

West End Birder

Well-known member

KenM

Well-known member

West End Birder

Well-known member

eddy the eagle

Well-known member

MJB

Well-known member

West End Birder

Well-known member

Farnboro John

Well-known member

Andy Hurley

Gotta love nature!

Attachments

Redshank3

Well-known member

West End Birder

Well-known member

Boro Birder

Well-known member

Similar threads

Users who are viewing this thread