Chinese Sparrowhawk? - Bangkok this afternoon (1 Viewer)

[Aladdin]

Dear members and bird watchers!

I did some bird watching in Suan Rot Fai, Bangkok this afternoon. I walked, I don't want to call it a forest, but it was a stretch with a dense foliage. So it felt like walking in the forest for 50 meters or so. Anyway, there was a small hole in the canopy. I don’t know how I manage to spot the bird in the very small opening.

I took pictures and I had no clue what bird it was. Coming home and I spent quite some time in my books and on internet to get the ID. First I thought it was a Falcon, but the bird did not have hairy legs so I gave up that idea. 30 minutes later, and I had been working with the Chinese Sparrowhawk. Looked quite like, except for the yellow eyes. But after a lot of looking around I found out that the female have yellow eyes.

Is here anyone on the forum that can be so kind to tell me if I am right or wrong, female Chinese Sparrowhawk?

Kind regards and happy birding
Aladdin

 

[Grahame Walbridge]

Dear members and bird watchers!

I did some bird watching in Suan Rot Fai, Bangkok this afternoon. I walked, I don't want to call it a forest, but it was a stretch with a dense foliage. So it felt like walking in the forest for 50 meters or so. Anyway, there was a small hole in the canopy. I don’t know how I manage to spot the bird in the very small opening.

I took pictures and I had no clue what bird it was. Coming home and I spent quite some time in my books and on internet to get the ID. First I thought it was a Falcon, but the bird did not have hairy legs so I gave up that idea. 30 minutes later, and I had been working with the Chinese Sparrowhawk. Looked quite like, except for the yellow eyes. But after a lot of looking around I found out that the female have yellow eyes.

Is here anyone on the forum that can be so kind to tell me if I am right or wrong, female Chinese Sparrowhawk?

Kind regards and happy birding
Aladdin

Yes, it's certainly a Chinese Sparrowhawk, a 2 cy, the brown wings appear all retained juvenile + least 2 juvenile (brown) tail feathers contrasting with a/l 2 inner (blue-grey) adult feathers. As to sex, yellow eyes might indicate female, although, uncertain when they begin redden up in males. It shares the grey orbital ring with Shikra, but note, orange-yellow cere, the darker grey upper parts, longer wings and proportionally shorter tail.

Grahame

 

[MJB]

Dear members and bird watchers!

I did some bird watching in Suan Rot Fai, Bangkok this afternoon. I walked, I don't want to call it a forest, but it was a stretch with a dense foliage. So it felt like walking in the forest for 50 meters or so. Anyway, there was a small hole in the canopy. I don’t know how I manage to spot the bird in the very small opening.

I took pictures and I had no clue what bird it was. Coming home and I spent quite some time in my books and on internet to get the ID. First I thought it was a Falcon, but the bird did not have hairy legs so I gave up that idea. 30 minutes later, and I had been working with the Chinese Sparrowhawk. Looked quite like, except for the yellow eyes. But after a lot of looking around I found out that the female have yellow eyes.

Is here anyone on the forum that can be so kind to tell me if I am right or wrong, female Chinese Sparrowhawk?

Kind regards and happy birding
Aladdin

Japanese Sparrowhawk Accipiter gularis is mapped as a passage migrant through Thailand at this time of year: see http://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/japanese-sparrowhawk-accipiter-gularis

Chinese Sparrowhawk A. soloensis would very much be a vagrant: see http://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/chinese-sparrowhawk-accipiter-soloensis
MJB

 

[Aladdin]

Yes, it's certainly a Chinese Sparrowhawk, a 2 cy, the brown wings appear all retained juvenile + least 2 juvenile (brown) tail feathers contrasting with a/l 2 inner (blue-grey) adult feathers. As to sex, yellow eyes might indicate female, although, uncertain when they begin redden up in males. It shares the grey orbital ring with Shikra, but note, orange-yellow cere, the darker grey upper parts, longer wings and proportionally shorter tail.

Grahame

Thank you!

The eye made me crazy as the picture have very dark eyes. I spent a lot of time looking around until I spotted a small head with a female sign under the main picture. And this head had yellow eyes.

Kind Regards and happy birding
Aladdin

 

[Grahame Walbridge]

Japanese Sparrowhawk Accipiter gularis is mapped as a passage migrant through Thailand at this time of year: see http://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/japanese-sparrowhawk-accipiter-gularis

Chinese Sparrowhawk A. soloensis would very much be a vagrant: see http://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/chinese-sparrowhawk-accipiter-soloensis
MJB

Mike, Chinese Sparrowhawk is a common passage migrant in Thailand, Aug-Nov and Feb-May, although, as with most raptors, passage is larger and more concentrated in the autumn.

Grahame

 

[Aladdin]

Japanese Sparrowhawk Accipiter gularis is mapped as a passage migrant through Thailand at this time of year: see http://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/japanese-sparrowhawk-accipiter-gularis

Chinese Sparrowhawk A. soloensis would very much be a vagrant: see http://datazone.birdlife.org/species/factsheet/chinese-sparrowhawk-accipiter-soloensis
MJB

Thank you!

I checked the Japanese in my book as well. This bird have yellow eyes but it is very streaked, heavy streaked. Male have a chest looking like "MY" bird. With redish belly under the wings, but according to my book and pictures on internet the male Japanese have a yellow eye ring and "MY" bird have no ring. This was the reason for me to go for Chinese

Kind regards and happy birding
Aladdin

 

[MJB]

Mike, Chinese Sparrowhawk is a common passage migrant, Aug-Nov and Feb-May.

Grahame

Thanks Grahame. I've looked again at the Datazone map for Chinese Sparrowhawk and realised that the two shades of green for vegetation and passage are similar enough for small, disparate areas of passage to be difficult to distinguish (The map for Japanese Sparrowhawk indicates passage over the entirety of Thailand and so swamps the vegetation's green). I wonder of the Datazone maps have had a boost in colour density, because I haven't encountered that difficulty before?

I live and learn and so withdraw my suggestion that Chinese Sparrowhawk was a vagrant in Thailand.
MJB

 

[johnallcock]

Thanks Grahame. I've looked again at the Datazone map for Chinese Sparrowhawk and realised that the two shades of green for vegetation and passage are similar enough for small, disparate areas of passage to be difficult to distinguish (The map for Japanese Sparrowhawk indicates passage over the entirety of Thailand and so swamps the vegetation's green). I wonder of the Datazone maps have had a boost in colour density, because I haven't encountered that difficulty before?

I live and learn and so withdraw my suggestion that Chinese Sparrowhawk was a vagrant in Thailand.
MJB

It's actually quite a misleading map for Chinese Sparrowhawk. I think they should be passage migrants across most of mainland Southeast Asia and I think winter in some places, but are not shown there at all. Meanwhile in Hong Kong and southern Guangdong they are shown as a 'Native Resident', even though they neither breed nor winter in most of this area and occur only on passage.

 

[MJB]

It's actually quite a misleading map for Chinese Sparrowhawk. I think they should be passage migrants across most of mainland Southeast Asia and I think winter in some places, but are not shown there at all. Meanwhile in Hong Kong and southern Guangdong they are shown as a 'Native Resident', even though they neither breed nor winter in most of this area and occur only on passage.

Thanks John! Perhaps you might drop a line to BL Datazone?
MJB