Birds and Nature

[post note, 12/30: as noted in next post I now believe there has only been one Zone-tailed Hawk, a juvenile] As I noted in an earlier post, I found the juvenile Zone-tailed Hawk in the morning while we were doing the Christmas Bird Count at Frontera Audubon Center. That (yesterday) afternoon Pat Heirs, with whom I was doing this count, spotted this second Zone-tailed Hawk less than a quarter mile from where the juvenile had been perching. This bird was more distant so it was more of a challenge to identify it. Though we looked through my Zeis spotting scope we could not see, and I did not photograph, the wide white band (or additional smaller white bands found on females of this species) that is so diagnostic for Zone-tailed Hawks. However, as noted in Wheeler's Hawks of Western North America , "When perched, wingtips extend far beyond tertials..." The wings can obscure the white tail bands. Note that on middle pic there are some tree blurry tree leaves in front...

The top pic gives a good view of the undertail feathers that in juvenile Zone-tailed Hawks is whitish with narrow black bands. The middle pic is even more interesting as the hawk is stretching it's right wing which allows unusual views of the underside of it's flight feathers that are whitish with black barring. The 'fingers' at the end of it's wing really extend far below it's tail. The last pic is just fun--the hawk has it's foot stretched up to it's bill as it scratches an itch. SeEtta

I found this juvenile Zone-tailed Hawk this morning while doing the Weslaco,TX Christmas Bird Count. This neotropical hawk is a regular visitor to the Lower Rio Grande Valley of TX. After first finding it at 9:30 this morning, it flew off. I was very surprised to spot it again late this afternoon at 5 p.m. not far from where I saw it this morning. SeEtta