On Monday while observing the reported Smith's Longspur just north of Long Point, in the company of Henrique Pacheco and several other birders, an interesting Red-tailed Hawk was observed doing a single pass-over of the site.
The bird was completely hooded and dark breasted. On site, it was identified as a calurus Western Red-Tailed Hawk. Knowing his interest in Western Red-tails, I sent the photos to Jon Ruddy, who in turn sent the pics to several leading raptor experts including Jerry Liguori and Brian Sullivan. Their feedback is that there are inconsistencies in plumage for a calurus, and that the bird may be a more interesting colour morph of a different subspecies. Anyone observing the SMLO, or birding in the general area around Long Point should keep an eye open for this bird in case it has a territory in the area. Any photos that can be obtained in particular would be appreciated for upload to Ebird. Here is the EBird report I submitted : http://ebird.org/ebird/view/checklist/S33107937 As well an album with more pics : https://www.flickr.com/gp/146000359@N08/kR3P68 The subspecies ID could not be 100% confirmed by the experts, but if additional pics can be obtained, perhaps it is possible. Happy holidays and birding to all. C.Cheatle, Hamilton _______________________________________________ ONTBIRDS is presented by the Ontario Field Ornithologists (OFO) - the provincial birding organization. Send bird reports to [email protected] For information about ONTBIRDS including how to unsubscribe visit http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdssetup Posting guidelines can be found at http://www.ofo.ca/site/page/view/information.ontbirdsguide Visit the OFO Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/OntarioFieldOrnithologists
