Jack, I think your original ID of light morph Harlan's is correct. This
strikes me as a good example of a “forest vs. the trees” ID. Setting aside any
particular field marks, my overwhelming impression about the bird is how very
“cold” the colors are. There’s little if any hint of brown in the dark
feathers and no trace at all of buff or rufous in the light feathers. It’s
basically a black and white bird. That necessarily makes it a Harlan’s (spp.
harlani). Western red-tails (spp. calurus) may occasionally have funky
plumages, but none would ever be so devoid of color. Obviously, this is a
light-phase Harlan’s, and it’s in juvenile plumage (meaning it hatched spring
of this year) by virtue of the barred tail and yellow cere and iris. I only
have one comment regarding a particular field mark. The feathers on Harlan’s
extend further down the leg than on western red-tails, leaving noticeably less
tarsus exposed (as on this bird), but they don’t extend all the way to the toes
as with roughies. Therefore the leg feathering on this bird is indeed
appropriate for a Harlan's. It may not appear that way at first glance, but the
leg feathers are wet and clumped together, exposing more of the tarsi than
normal.
Olin
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Olin Allen
Shangri-Llama Farm
Monmouth, Oregon
On Mon, Nov 18, 2019 at 8:02 PM Jack Williamson <
jack.williamson.jr@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
I have more questions than answers after reviewing a few images
(presumably) of the same bird first found by Ed McVicker then refound by
Tom McNamara 16 November.
I have labeled the following field marks for [+] and against [-] a
Harlan's Id this evening after reviewing images captured earlier today
[-] Lack of Feathered tarsi
[+] Outer primaries appear boldly banded
[-] Absence of a dark belly band
[-] Patagials not larger/bolder than other species in the area
[-] Absence of longitudinal black streaks on retrices
[-] Forecrown not distinctly whiteish
[+] Yellow cere
Looking forward to learning what I have not seen but should have.
View the full-screen slideshow for the best resolution.
https://adobe.ly/346t2UI
Jack Williamson
West Linn, Oregon
