Raptor ID Workshop & Plum Island Hawk Migration Brian Rusnica / Eastern Mass Hawk Watch Welcome! Joppa Flats Education Center Workshop Schedule Segment Schedule Time Introductions 15 minutes 9:00-9:15 Identification Technique 30 minutes 9:15-9:45 Massachusetts Migrant Hawk Species 30 minutes 9:45-10:15 Break 10 minutes 10:15-10:25 Massachusetts Migrant Hawk Species 45 minutes 10:25-11:10 Hawkwatching at Plum Island 20 minutes 11:10-11:30 Field Trip: Meet at PRNWR Lot #1 2.5 hours 11:30-2:00 Raptor ID Workshop Goals Raptor ID Workshop Goals For Today For Tomorrow ● Intro to Identification Technique ● Identify Areas to Explore next ● Overview of 14 expected Massachusetts ○ Media for Raptor ID migrant raptor species ○ Organizations ● Intro to Hawkwatching at Plum Island ○ Equipment for Hawkwatching ● Practice in the field Birding Ethics (American Birding Association) 1. Promote the welfare of birds and their environment. ● Always: keep back from nests, roosts, & feeding sites ● Always: stay on trails ● Always: leave no trace ● Limit: human impact ● Limit: advertising locations of nesting/wintering birds ● Limit: use of audio recordings ● Never: baiting ● Never: intentional flushing ● Never: use of flash photography Source: http://listing.aba.org/ethics/ Birding Ethics (American Birding Association) 2. Respect the law, and the rights of others. ● Always: be a birder ambassador ● Never: bird on private property 3. Ensure that feeders, nest structures, and other artificial bird environments are safe. ● Always: monitor feeder conditions ● Never: expose birds to domestic pets 4. Group birding, whether organized or impromptu, requires special care. ● Always: Seek ethical guides and organizations ● Always: call out unethical behavior Source: http://listing.aba.org/ethics/ About Me Brian Rusnica (Cambridge, MA) ● Counter & co-coordinator, Mount Watatic Fall Hawkwatch site ● Counter, Plum Island Spring Hawkwatch site ● Board of Directors, Eastern Mass Hawk Watch ● Board of Directors, North East Hawk Watch ● Administrator, “Raptor ID” Facebook group ● Links ○ http://flickr.com/photos/quadceratops ○ http://14hawks8owls.com ○ http://twitter.com/CambridgeCoops ○ http://hawkseason.com Identification Technique Identification Technique Outline ● Disclaimers ● Basic Terms ○ Parts & Plumage ● Size, Scale & Shape ○ Sparrow > Robin > Crow > Goose ○ Raptor Shapes ● Behavior ○ Flight Style ○ Habitat ○ Hunting Style ○ Vocalization Disclaimers ● Students, not experts ● Exceptions to every rule ● Some birds cannot be identified ● Birds have wings ● Practice, not equipment Identification Technique ● Combination of field marks ● Shape ● Flight Style ● Plumage ● “Learn the basics well” ○ Learn the minutiae later Basic Terms Basic Terms Field Mark - visible mark or characteristic that can be used for identification Topside - side of a bird facing upwards when in level flight Underside - side of a bird facing ground when in level flight GISS (General Impression, Size & Shape) - Overall impression of a bird Streaked/Streaks - vertically-oriented marks Barred/Bars - horizontally-oriented marks Banded/Bands - alternating bands of color Size, Scale and Shape Behavior Flight Styles Soaring Gliding Soar-Hunting Rough-legged Hawk Osprey Red-tailed Hawk Flight Styles Head-on Wing-on Going away Red-tailed Hawk Northern Harrier Merlin Flight Styles Flapping Hovering Stooping American Kestrel American Kestrel Peregrine Falcon Flight Styles Dihedral Modified Dihedral Flat Turkey Vulture Northern Harrier Bald Eagle Habitat & Likely Species Open Areas / Grasslands ● American Kestrel ● Northern Harrier ● Rough-legged Hawk Forest ● Red-tailed Hawk ● Red-shouldered Hawk ● Broad-winged Hawk ● Sharp-shinned Hawk ● Northern Goshawk Habitat & Likely Species Wetlands/Lakes/Coastal ● Bald Eagle ● Osprey Urban/Suburban ● Red-tailed Hawk ● Cooper’s Hawk ● Peregrine Falcon General ● Turkey Vulture ● Merlin Hunting Styles Soar hunting ● Red-tailed Hawk ● Bald Eagle Perch hunting ● Red-shouldered Hawk ● Broad-winged Hawk Pursuit/On-wing ● Cooper’s Hawk ● Sharp-shinned Hawk ● Merlin Hunting Styles Hovering ● American Kestrel ● Rough-legged Hawk ● Osprey Stooping ● Peregrine Falcon Low Flight ● Northern Harrier Hunting Styles Fishing ● Bald Eagle ● Osprey Insecting ● American Kestrel ● Merlin Scavenging ● Turkey Vulture ● Bald Eagle Vocalizations and Calls Peregrine Falcon Osprey Northern Goshawk Red-shouldered Hawk All audio samples via Macaulay Library at Cornell Lab of Ornithology Species Accounts Buteos Hawks with long, broad wings and short tails Red-tailed Hawk Overview ✓ A large buteo with a bellyband of streaked feathers and dark patagial marks. Red-tailed Hawk Adult ✓ A large buteo with a bellyband of streaked feathers and dark patagial marks. Adult: ● Brick-orange top of tail ● Dark brown irises ● Complex brown tones ● Both sexes plumage identical Red-tailed Hawk Juvenile ✓ A large buteo with a bellyband of streaked feathers and dark patagial marks. Juvenile: ● Light brown tail with many thin, dark brown bands ● Pale yellow irises ● Monochromatic brown tones. ● Both sexes plumage identical Red-tailed Hawk At Distance/In Flight Flight styles: ● Soars in wide, slow circles with slight dihedral, uplifted at hands ● Also kites, hovers, swoops ● Fluid, shallow wingbeats Red-shouldered Hawk Overview ✓ A medium buteo with a pale crescent marks on outer wing and many thin pale bands on a dark tail. Red-shouldered Hawk Adult ✓ A medium buteo with a pale crescent marks on outer wing and many thin pale bands on a dark tail. Adult ● Rufous barred breast ● Rufous shoulder patch ● Black & white banded flight feathers ● Black tail with thin white bands ● Dark brown irises ● Both sexes plumage identical Red-shouldered Hawk Juvenile ✓ A medium buteo with a pale crescent marks on outer wing and many thin pale bands on a dark tail. Juvenile ● Brown-streaks on pale breast, evenly distributed ● Dark brown top ● Dark tail with thin white bands ● Yellow-to-brown irises ● Both sexes plumage identical Red-shouldered Hawk At Distance/In Flight ● Soars in steady circles on flat wings ● Wings pushed slightly forward in a soar ● Blunt/square wingtips ● Quick, stiff wingbeats ● Pale crescents visible from extreme distance Broad-winged Hawk Overview ✓ A small buteo with a compact shape, stocky wings that are usually pointed at the tips. Broad-winged Hawk Adult ✓ A small buteo with a compact shape, stocky wings that are usually pointed at the tips. Adult: ● Rufous-barring on chest, heaviest near neck and fading near bottom ● Bold black/white tail bands ● Dark trailing edge to wings ● Brown top, pale below ● Both sexes plumage identical Broad-winged Hawk Juvenile ✓ A small buteo with a compact shape, stocky wings that are usually pointed at the tips. Adult: ● Variable brown streaking on pale breast, heaviest on flanks ● Dark brown top ● Faint, narrow bands with dark sub-terminal band ● Yellow to Yellow-Brown irises ● Both sexes plumage identical Broad-winged Hawk At Distance/In Flight ● Soars in small, tight circles on flat, stocky wings ● Pointed wingtips in a glide ● Snappy, stiff wingbeats ● Adult’s broad tail-band visible from extreme distance Rough-legged Hawk Overview ✓ A large buteo with long, narrow wings, small bill and feet with feathered legs. Comes in light and dark morphs. Rough-legged Hawk Light Morph ✓ A large buteo with long, narrow wings, small bill and feet with feathered legs. Comes in light and dark morphs. Light Morph: ● White overall w/dark carpal patches ● Variable dark belly and underside mottling ● Irises: Pale Yellow as juv, Dark Brown as adult ● Subtle differences between sexes Rough-legged Hawk Dark Morph ✓ A large buteo with long, narrow wings, small bill and feet with feathered legs. Comes in light and dark morphs. Dark Morph: ● Dark Brown to Black overall ● Variable tail patterns including banding ● Irises: Pale Yellow as juv, Dark Brown as adult ● Subtle differences between sexes Rough-legged Hawk At Distance/In Flight ● Soars with a slight dihedral on long, lanky wings ● Frequently hovers or kites when hunting ● Floppy, powerful wingbeats Accipiters Hawks with short, rounded wings and long tails Sharp-shinned Hawk Overview ✓ A small accipiter with a small, round head, short, round wings, top-heavy torso and a thin, banded tail that can appear squared-off at distance. Sharp-shinned Hawk Adult ✓ A small accipiter with a small, round head, short, round wings, top-heavy torso and a thin, banded tail that can appear squared-off at distance. Adult: ● Blue to Blue-Gray top, Rufous barring on pale underside ● Dark cap and nape: “hooded” ● Irises: Orange to Deep Red ● Males more vibrantly colored than females Sharp-shinned Hawk Juvenile ✓ A small accipiter with a small, round head, short, round wings, top-heavy torso and a thin, banded tail that can appear squared-off at distance. Juvenile: ● Brown top, Rufous-Brown, blurry streaking on pale underside ● Irises: Pale Yellow to Yellow-Orange ● Both sexes plumage identical Sharp-shinned Hawk At Distance/In Flight ● Buoyant, agile but unsteady flight ● Soars in tight circles on stubby, short wings ● ‘Flap-flap-glide’ - Many rapid, snappy wingbeats between glides ○ Wingbeats too quick to count ● Small heads, narrow and square-tipped tails Cooper’s Hawk Overview ✓ A medium accipiter with a large squarish head, longer, thinner wings, tubular torso and a banded tail that can appear rounded-off at distance. Cooper’s Hawk Adult ✓ A medium accipiter with a large squarish head, longer, thinner wings, tubular torso and a banded tail that can