IDAHO BIRD RECORDS COMMITTEE
RARE BIRD REPORT FORM

SPECIES:

Red-shouldered Hawk

HOW MANY:

1

REPORTER:

Kyle Wright
c/o Idaho Bird Observatory
BoiseStateUniversity,dept.Bio
1910 University Dr
Boise, ID 83725

REPORTER EMAIL:

kywright@vt.edu

OTHER OBSERVERS:

DATE REPORT PREPARED:

29 Sept 2007

DATE SIGHTING OCCURRED:

24 Sept 2007

LOCALITY OF OBSERVATION:

Observed from Lucky Peak, BLM land in Ada County (?) east of Boise

HABITAT:

Bird in flight over mountainous country.

CONDITIONS:

Bird Observed as Part of Idaho Bird Observatory's fall 2007 Lucky Peak Hawkwatch. Bird observed migrating for less than five minutes with Leica 8x42 binoculars; bird was distant and in poor lighting.

DID YOU TAKE NOTES?:

Yes, during the observation

DID YOU CONSULT FIELD GUIDE OR OTHER REFERENCES?:

No, not at all

WHAT GUIDE(S) OR REFERENCE(S) DID YOU CONSULT?:



DESCRIPTION:

The bird was first noticed head on as a distant silhouette doing an accipiter-like flap flap glide with snappy wingbeats primarily below the horizontal and with little bend at the wrist. When the bird wheeled around, the shape was that of a lanky buteo with a moderately long tail. The bird remained distant and backlit, but did display moderatly streaked underparts at one point, indicating a juvenile plumage, though extent of streaking and richness of colour were not observed well enough to classify the bird into a subspecies group. The bird went off ridge well north of the lookout, and was lost as it cut southwest acrost the Treasure Valley.

BEHAVIOR:

Migrating.

HOW AND WHEN DID YOU POSITIVELY IDENTIFY THE BIRD, AND WHAT CLINCHED THE IDENTIFICATION FOR YOU?

The bird was identified within 30 seconds of first being sighted. As a distinctly shaped buteo with an accipiter-like flight, only Red-shouldered Hawk fits.

HOW DID YOU ELIMINATE SIMILAR SPECIES, AND WHAT WERE THEY?

Flight style was wrong for any other buteos with the extensive snappy wingbeats as described above. While my initial reaction to the bird was Sharp-shined Hawk, upon seeing and studying its shape, it was far too long winged and short tailed. The tail also fanned wider than a Sharpie while in full soar. While Norther Goshawk has a reputation for being between a buteo and an accipiter in jiz and gestalt as well, this bird was not remotely barrel chested, broad winged, and long tailed enough for Gos, and the wingbeats were, again, too snappy. The bird soared on flat or slightly cupped wings, eliminating Northern Harrier and Swainson's Hawk, and was too long winged and lanky for Red-tailed or Braod-winged Hawks, and agian, the frequent, snappy wing beats primarily below the horizontal were not right for Ferruginous, Rough-legged, Swainsons, Harrier, or any other semi-boyant mid to large sized diurnal raptor.

EXPERIENCE WITH THIS SPECIES (AND SIMILAR SPECIES):

I have extensive experience with eastern Red-shouldereds in migration having seen easily 500 of them while serving as the lead hwakwatcher for Bake Oven Knob in eastern Pennsylvania in 2005, and having spent much time at Derby Hill Bird Observatory in Upstate New York observing spring movements of diurnal raptors. I have also seen a few of the California subspecies of Red-shouldered Hawk while living north of San Francisco and working for PRBO COnservation Science. I have seen many other raptors of other species in flight in various lighting and weather conditions at the afore mentioned hawk wathces and through other experiences birding profesionally and recreationally, the latter of which I have been doing for over a decade.

GENERAL BIRDING EXPERIENCE:

I have been birding for over a decade and working as a wildife technician on bird-related projects off and on for about five years. I have spent extensive time observing migrating diurnal raptors both at Derby Hill Bird Observatory, where I volunteered many weekends from March to May from 1996 to 2000, and serving as the lead hawk counter for Bake Oven Knob in fall of 2005.

WERE PHOTO(S), VIDEO, AND/OR AUDIO OBTAINED BY YOU?:

None