Which Buteo? Cuenca-Central Spain-August 2021 (1 Viewer)

[fdokykcu]

We find this bird and relocated it three days later in the same area, when the photos were taken (against a backlite than prevented better detail). Shows an orange tail without terminal dark band (except for a hint in the two outer rectrices), somehow scalloped patterned coverts. Tarsi appear strong, however wing just reaches tail tip but do not extend past it (as explained in Birding World 26 (4): 147-173). Both times the bird didn't fly overhead, preventing any view of the underwing.

Could it be an Atlas Long-Legged Buzzard, as I suspect, or is just another individual within the variation of Buteo buteo?

Thanks

 

[HouseCrow]

Have you considered juvenile Red Kite or even a colourful Black Kite? Or is that out of the question?

I have no experience with 'our' kites perched, only Black-eared in the far east.

edit: I forgot to add that quite a few puzzle raptors turned out to be perched juvenile kites... it's not a sight most of us are familiar with.

cheers,
G

 

[Alexander Stöhr]

Hello,
no its a Buzzard of some sort imo. A Red Kite can be excluded by

• lack of an quite uniform streaked head with a pale greyish ground colour in most
• too short tail
• wrong pattern on the upperparts

But which? I cant answer that, but this bird would stand hugely out in Germany by

• buffish orange tones to pale parts
• quite uniform underparts lacking the u-shaped breast band (yes, its easy to see a CB lacking this in Germany)
• really totally unpatterned uniform upperside of the tail
• wet-combed pattern of back
• head pattern with round shaped, pale area on cheeks. Yes, this a far resemblence to a Kites-face. But it doesnt look like the real deal to me.

Yes Common Buzzard is so variable, but these points together results in a strange bird. And I cant make this bird into a Common Buzzard from central Eeurpe.
Conclusion? Tom and others, please help!

 

[CARERY]

I think Atlas Long-legged Buzzard (though a recent paper suggests that it's actually a B. buteo North African Buzzard is not a Long-legged but an allospecies of Common Buzzard - MaghrebOrnitho) seems a good call. But with this black subterminal bar it is also reminiscent of a vulpinus. Still, I would not claim a 'Steppe Buzzard' in Spain. I found this very enlightening post How many morphs do we know for Atlas Long-legged Buzzard?
Here a museum specimen of cirtensis with a dark subterminal bar is shown.

 

[tconzemi]

looks like a typical Steppe Buzzard in Spain, which means it should be a so called Gibraltar Buzzard, intergrade between cirtensis and buteo

Gibraltar Buzzard: status and identification - MaghrebOrnitho

‘Gibraltar Buzzard’, the presumed result of the hybridisation between the Common Buzzard and the Atlas Long-legged Buzzard.

www.google.lu

 

[HouseCrow]

pardon the silly (edit: my) suggestion earlier... this is a lot more fun, although not uncommon I suppose in migration times.

cheers,
G

 

[Alexander Stöhr]

pardon the silly suggestion earlier... this is a lot more fun, although not uncommon I suppose in migration times.

cheers,
G

I dont see any silly suggestion in this thread, just many answers/suggestions, that finally resulted in a confident ID with useful hints/features that help me in the future, including reference to older threads (yes, birdforum is a useful addition to any fieldguide!).
And my request for expert-opinion was heard, too! Thanks to all!

 

[fdokykcu]

Thanks to everyone that has contributed to this thread! As Alexander says above, all the suggestions given, as well as the references, have been very useful and helped me to be more confident on the proposed ID. Also the taxonomical precisions on the current and suggested status for these individuals have been quite interesting and helpful

 

[Tib78]

Hi all,

In my view this bird actually looks more like a typical cirtensis than a Gibraltar buzzard at a glance, even though the tail has a subterminal bar. This doesn’t mean that the bird isn’t of hybrid origin of course, but if there is buteo influence in this bird it is probably minimal. In any case I certainly wouldn’t rule out a good cirtensis based on these images and I think local birders would be quite interested to know where it was photographed in case the bird is still there.
By the way the wingtip to tailtip ratio is of little use in this case as the bird is busy growing its outermost primaries.

 

[fdokykcu]

and I think local birders would be quite interested to know where it was photographed in case the bird is still there.

In case someone wants to have a look, the exact place of the last observation is given here: https://ebird.org/checklist/S95346441 (for the moment I have it as Buteo sp). Thanks again!

 

[tconzemi]

Hi all,

In my view this bird actually looks more like a typical cirtensis than a Gibraltar buzzard at a glance, even though the tail has a subterminal bar.

Interesting thought, the subterminal tail bar is indeed the only unusual trait in this bird, it looks bold at least on the outer tail feathers, thus my ID. Question: (I have not been to Morocco for many years) how common is a bold subterminal bar in light ginger birds in northern Africa? Interesting bird and story anyway.

 

[Joern Lehmhus]

Very interesting thread. The tail pattern with the incomplete subterminal bar reminds me of this bird :

https://flic.kr/p/4xR7f7

but otherwise they are clearly different. The bird photographed in this thread does look like cirtensis also to me in most respects , but I have no experience other than photos from this taxon...