Thailand-Crested Serpent-Eagle + Khao Yai National Park today (1 Viewer)

[Aladdin]

Dear Members and Bird Watchers!

Just back home from Khao Yai National Park. Not many birds to be seen, but many of them are heard. The park is full of Red-whiskered Bulbuls but it shows as SENSITIVE in eBird. It had been SENSITIVE when I reported it in Bangkok. But when I have reported them in the north they have not been SENSITIVE.

Anyway, not many birds to report in eBird so I was kind of desperate (and just by looking at the poor picture you understand how desperate I was) to get a little something for my eBird checklist and I took a picture of the attached Raptor.

I was ID the bird as a Crested Serpent-Eagle when I came back to look in my books. The bird have 6 fingers, same as in the book. But in the books the fingers looks much shorter.

And the Crested Serpent-Eagle is the only bird in the book that kind of fit the wing pattern.

Anyone here have any other suggestions?

Kind Regards and Happy Birding
Aladdin

 

[Bewick]

Oriental honey buzzard is another one that has a similar pattern, head size and tail length also seem better- fingers are good for both.

 

[dwatsonbirder]

Are you able to upload the original full sized image please @Aladdin ? This would make an informed assessment much easier.

 

[Bewick]

Are you able to upload the original full sized image please @Aladdin ? This would make an informed assessment much easier.

 

[Aladdin]

Oriental honey buzzard is another one that has a similar pattern, head size and tail length also seem better- fingers are good for both.

Thank you very much !

I have changed it to Crested (Oriental) Honey Buzzard after comparing them in my book. The tail in my picture looks like a buzzard.

Very appreciated!

Kind Regards
Aladdin

 

[Aladdin]

Are you able to upload the original full sized image please @Aladdin ? This would make an informed assessment much easier.

Hello dwatsonbirder!

I am sorry, the bird was just a small black dot in the sky very far away. So this was the only picture I could use among many taken.

Kind Regards
Aladdin

 

[dwatsonbirder]

Personally I'm not sure this is identifiable, others may disagree.
If pushed, I'd suggest a moulting immature (2cy?) CSE which has dropped P4, but could as easily be OHB. Are you able to upload the other images (no matter how poor)?

 

[THE_FERN]

Surely the underwing pattern is better for the honeybuzzard, even allowing for picture quality

 

[dwatsonbirder]

Surely the underwing pattern is better for the honeybuzzard, even allowing for picture quality

No idea, unsure what is artefact and what is actually feather detail.

Some nice photos of OHB here (note square wings; difficult on single image, but arguably not a great fit for the OP bird) and a couple of images of CSE here and here. Someone with technical skills could try to alter the exposure for the images and cross reference with the OP bird, but I'm on the fence either way, with a slight tendency towards CSE. Hopefully others with more experience will chip in.

 

[Bewick]

No idea, unsure what is artefact and what is actually feather detail.

Some nice photos of OHB here (note square wings; difficult on single image, but arguably not a great fit for the OP bird) and a couple of images of CSE here and here. Someone with technical skills could try to alter the exposure for the images and cross reference with the OP bird, but I'm on the fence either way, with a slight tendency towards CSE. Hopefully others with more experience will chip in.

I actually disagree- I think the wing shape, is generally much better for a OHB. So is the length of the tail and the small head.

Edit- also what screams CSE if the underpattern might be affected by artefacts?

 

[dwatsonbirder]

Nothing "screams" CSE - far from it, as I've suggested twice that it could be either species...

The S shape of the trailing edge with the pinch point where the tertials joins the body is rarely as pronounced for OHB as what we can see on the image, which arguably better fits serpent eagle.
I wouldn't comment on the apparent head size or relative tail length from a single poor (sorry Aladdin - no offence meant!) image at an odd angle.

 

[Bewick]

Nothing "screams" CSE - far from it, as I've suggested twice that it could be either species...

The S shape of the trailing edge with the pinch point where the tertials joins the body is rarely as pronounced for OHB as what we can see on the image, which arguably better fits serpent eagle.
I wouldn't comment on the apparent head size or relative tail length from a single poor (sorry Aladdin - no offence meant!) image at an odd angle.

It does look prenounced IMO, it is really reminiscent of the ones I saw on a few European buzzards I had a few weeks back (obviously a different bird but they are quite similar).

Please post more pics- no matter the quality!

 

[Aladdin]

Thank you all!

There is no more pictures, all are deleted as they came out with nothing but a blur. The bird was very far away and this was the only one I could use.

Kind Regards
Aladdin