Hello birders. Yesterday (Tuesday), while birding my favored patch, North Shields Ponds NA, I was blessed and simultaneously cursed to see what I am confident was a Kite of some kind. After ruminating and some book study, I think it possibly maybe and most likely was a 1st year White-tailed Kite but I'm not sure. I didn't have the cojones to call it that on eBird but thought I should get the word out and have a few more eyes out looking for it in case it sticks around.
This is the description I entered into eBird: "Not sure what this was, my impression was a Kite. I noticed a bird flying up the Poudre being mobbed by 2 swallows a Red-winged and a 4th bird. From the head-on view, I suspected it to be a Broad-winged hawk based on its size and pale head. Suddenly it banked and I had a good view of its underside. I noticed thin, angular and pointed wings - falcon like. The wrists and hands seemed to be nearly equal in length and width and the tips pointed. It had a slim longish body and the tail was wider at the tip than the base, trapezoidal, longish and square edged. Overall it was a pale light colored bird with some sandy tan colored hints. There were some dark parts in the wing but I failed to gather clear mental image of it. The tail also seemed pale and translucent but I did see vague sandy tan barring terminally (reminiscent of juvenile RTHA) and a darker terminal band. It flew to the SW behind some trees. I had spotty views of it from there but it seemed buoyant and skillful in flight covering a long distance with minimal flapping. The flight style was unlike any Buteo or Accipitor. After some study my best guess would be a 1st year White-tailed Kite but I am left mystified." David Wade Ft Collins, CO -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups "Colorado Birds" group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to cobirds+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send email to cobirds@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/cobirds/3380f8ee-f57c-47a3-b246-7859991f9a27%40googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
