FreeLists / birdky / [birdky] Re: Close Encounter of the Krider's Kind

[Mark Monroe <markmonroe1@xxxxxxxxx>]

Jeff and others,

I'm going to go out on a limb (famous last words, I
know) and say I do not think this bird is anything
more than a worn Eastern Red-tail (borealis race). 
Most notably, the bird is clearly very worn yet has a
'very' dark red tail still from what can be seen.  I
would think any Krider's would be virtually snow white
in the tail with this much wear.  Additionally, no
part that is exceptionally white on this bird cannot
be attributed to heavy wear nor does it necessary
point towards Krider's, and in fact, a small
percentage of Eastern Red-taileds look like this in
August when they are at their heaviest wear. 
Furthermore, Krider's frequently do not show that much
white in the coverts or scapulars and the white in the
head often does not spread to the nape. At least in my
experience, it's generally more of a face/cap effect
as opposed to a full hood.  All of these point to wear
in my opinion. A separate small oddity that this bird
has is it still possesses a very pale eye for what
seemingly appears to be an adult bird, something that
'may' suggest some other factors at work in this
bird's appearance.

On a separate note, if my feeble memory serves, I
believe Krider's is treated as an upper western
prairie subspecies of Red-tailed in publications such
as the Birds of North America species accounts, and
not a simple color morph, although intergrades are
apparently quite regular. Conversely, other
authorities such as Wheeler/Clark may technically call
it a morph, but in reality they treat it as a distinct
subspecies with a distinct breeding range restricted
to the upper Great Plains (for a detailed, but
mind-numbing, discussion about this and Harlan's Hawk,
consult Mengel's Birds of Kentucky).  Since Krider's
that do show up here are migrants, and not residents,
the date of occurrence becomes relevant as well. 
Individuals typically do not show up until
October/November at the earliest in our region. This
is when the majority of Red-taileds typically migrate,
including most Western subspecies.

Unfortunately, I don't have much more at hand to back
me up at the moment other than the adult in fresh
plumage at http://www.biology.eku.edu/KOS/photos.htm
 (this bird may in fact not be pure Krider's as well,
but does show some of the characters clearly). I will
be out of town for several days, but I hope to look
again at the Birds of North America accounts on
Red-taileds next week and anything else helpful that I
might find to help shed light on this.  I welcome any
other comments, either way, as I feel this is a common
dilemma encountered in Kentucky/Tennessee.

Good birding,

Mark Monroe

--- OLCOOT1@xxxxxxx wrote:
> August 17, 2003
> Mississippi River Levee
> TN/KY line
> 
> Early Sunday morning, while the others had breakfast
> at Nancy's Blue Basin B&
> B at Reelfoot Lake, I snuck off and had an encounter
> with a stunning but 
> injured Krider's, Red-tailed Hawk that sat for a few
> portraits. The bird had lost 
> its hind talon on the right foot and that foot and
> leg were not fully 
> functional. Hopefully it will survive?
> 
> These are the rewards you get occasionally for the
> time and effort put out in 
> the field. To see up close and personal shots of
> this Krider's, try this site 
> and let me know what you think:
> 
> http://hometown.aol.com/olcoot1/page1.html
> 
>  
> Good Birding!!!
> 
> Jeff R. Wilson
> OL' COOT / TLBA
> Bartlett Tenn.
> 
> 
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your messages with first & last name, city, & 
state abbreviation.
--------------------------------------------------
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-------------------------------------------------- 
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birdky-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx 
with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject line.
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *  
Visit the Kentucky Ornithological Society
web site at http://www.biology.eku.edu/kos.htm
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * 
BIRDKY List Manager: Gary Ritchison, Richmond, KY
E-mail: gary.ritchison@xxxxxxx