ארכיון יומן של אפריל 2021

אפריל 19, 2021

Accipiter identification

colin25 suggested an ID ID Withdrawn
6d
Micronisus gabar
Gabar Goshawk
Micronisus gabar
krista_oswald suggested an ID ID Withdrawn
6d
Micronisus gabar
Gabar Goshawk
Micronisus gabar
christiaan_viljoen commented
1d

Just for interest sake, why are you saying that it is not a Black Sparrowhawk?
christiaan_viljoen commented
1d

The bird looks quite bulky, but it's very different for me to judge the size. The photographer will have to tell us if it was the size of a Rock Kestrel or the size of a Forest Buzzard...
christiaan_viljoen commented
1d

I suppose it could also be a melanistic African Goshawk. But that would be a very rare sighting indeed.
christiaan_viljoen commented
1d

I am just mentioning other options because the habitat is completely wrong for Gabar Goshawk...
colin25 commented
1d

Size hard to judge as it was soaring. Probably more kestrel size though. Other birders have seen this bird more or less at the same time and also think Gabar, despite habitat issue.
christiaan_viljoen commented
1d

Someone needs to call it to see it if will respond and even better, call back, their calls are very distinctive.

It's very highly unlikely to be a Gabar Goshawk, but if so, it will be an awesome observation for George.
christiaan_viljoen commented
1d

@julianparsons, @justinponder2505, @markheystek, @ludwig_muller
markheystek commented
1d

Thanks for tagging me. This Accipiter has got a yellow cere and legs but Gabar Goshawks have red ceres and legs don't they? Going according to that I'm sure this is one of the many Black Spars that hang around the Witfontein forest. Size would be the best key indeed!
krista_oswald commented
1d

I had gone with melanistic Gabar (which I've seen) because of the full black throat (which I had never seen on Black Sparr). I did now do some googling of images and it seems there is a lot of variation in the underside, so I withdrew my ID. The ceres is definitely a good pointer away from Gabar.
markheystek commented
1d

Ja, I thought about the white throat-patch too... Almost all the melanistic Black Spars I've seen here have had white on the throat, and in fact I only know of one individual in the area that is not melanistic, so there's definitely a higher chance of seeing a melanistic B Spar in this area! Would be super cool to have a Gabar though...
christiaan_viljoen commented
19h

So what about the possibility of a Melanistic African Goshawk???
krista_oswald commented
16h

... @christiaan_viljoen I have no good excuse or reasoning. Again, I can just say that because I've seen melanistic Gabar that's where my mind went. A really bad assumption and I should have refrained from an ID. Although, the ceres/feet would also point away from AfGos.
christiaan_viljoen commented
6h

I am just worried about the size of the bird. A Black Sparrowhawk is a really large bird. I saw one this morning, same size as the Pied Crow that chasing it, if not larger. In fact the tables soon turned and then it was chasing the crow. If the observer says this bird was much smaller then we might have to consider African Goshawk.

The eye and cere colour also matches African Goshawk. The only problem I have is the darkish eye. But the melanin might also affect the eye colour?
christiaan_viljoen commented
6h

@trevor102, @johnnybirder, @rion_c, @ianrijsdijk
christiaan_viljoen commented
6h

Have a look a the following observation of what I think is quite clearly a melanistic African Goshawk. Note the yellow eye...

https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/47861387

Based on that observation I would say that this is certainly a fully melanistic Black Sparrowhawk.
christiaan_viljoen suggested an ID* Leading
6h
Accipiter melanoleucus
Black Sparrowhawk
Accipiter melanoleucus

  • christiaan_viljoen disagrees this is Gabar Goshawk Micronisus gabar
    colin25 commented
    6h

I do have a "problem" with colours, fail those dreaded pale dots tests where you are supposed to see numbers, but to my dubious eye the legs are more red than yellow. Just my eye leading me astray?
christiaan_viljoen commented
6h

Cere is yellow and feet are orange-yellow. Not orange-red and certainly not red. In fact, I recently saw Gabar Goshawk in Mokala NP and their legs are almost pinkish-red.

Also consider that a melanistic bird might have slightly darker legs. I noticed that the legs of a melanistic Gabar Goshawk was a deeper red-orange, compared to its normal looking mate which had pinkish-red legs and feed. I will send provide a link to my observations of the Gabars at Mokala below.
christiaan_viljoen commented
6h

Melanistic Gabar Goshawk:

https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/74493587

and is mate:

https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/74493638

Note the colour of the legs and feet.
ianrijsdijk commented
3h

My first thought was Black Spar, especially with the wing profile in the second shot, and keeping mind that the males are somewhat smaller than the females. The lack of a white throat patch did worry me, though I have seen a very dark bird in the Tokai area that, as I remember it, has no white patch. Ulrich Oberprieler's book has an all black bird. I'm not as familiar with Gabar, especially in its melanistic form.

https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/73832307#activity_comment_9f1af140-ba60-496d-86c2-d0b932ff4f0d

הועלה ב-אפריל 19, 2021 12:52 אחה"צ על ידי ludwig_muller ludwig_muller | 0 תגובות | הוספת תגובה