The BRC count has now passed the 400,000 raptor mark which
at this stage is down on previous year counts but there has not been a big day
in terms of Honey Buzzard movements. Full details can be viewed in the link
below:-
Yesterday afternoon provided the BRC crew with some encouragement
with a surge of birds in the afternoon although many were distant from station
one passing through the mountains. A kettle of birds however emerged along the
coast late afternoon with birds passing overhead giving great views.
Additional data is collected on birds that pass overhead and
zone one either side of the counting station. Birds are aged and also sexed
where possible. There is much variation in the plumage in HB and varies from
light to dark morphs throughout all ages.
Adult male – Grey head with yellow iris, the flight feathers
show a black trailing edge with the primary finger tips black. The tail has a broad black band.
Adult female – Upperparts browner, head pale, primary fingers darker as they reach the tip, darker secondaries and lighter bands through the tail feathers.
Juvenile birds are beginning to appear in the bottleneck
their flight has been described as clumsy appearing oblivious to the potential
dangers in their surroundings.
Birds are generally dark ,bill is noticeably yellow, the wingtip is dark with darker secondaries, feathers are fresh without signs of moulting.
No comments:
Post a Comment