Raptor for ID; India (1 Viewer)

[Sumit]

Hi,
The attached raptor was photographed in Northern India in June this year. I'd hazard that it is in the 60cm size range. The image has been seen by a few experts and their opinions do not match. I will not cloud your judgement by going into who and what at this stage but will bring it in if the thread progresses. Personally, I thought that this is a juvenile Changeable Hawk Eagle ( Spizaetus cirrhatus) when I saw it but that ID has received no support. Thanks for your views.
Regards,
Sumit

 

[mountain man]

Hi Sumit,

On first glance I actually thought it was an Osprey.

I'm very prepared to be told I'm wrong...

Tom.

 

[mountain man]

Hi Sumit,

Just had a look through my fieldguides and the only other thing I could suggest is perhaps a juvenile pale morph Rufous-bellied Eagle. That and Osprey are the only 2 in my fieldguide that show such a strong and thick eyestripe.

The yellow eye still makes me think Osprey though, maybe a young, slightly messy bleached bird...?

 

[Sumit]

That and Osprey are the only 2 in my fieldguide that show such a strong and thick eyestripe.

The yellow eye still makes me think Osprey though, maybe a young, slightly messy bleached bird...?

Hi Tom,
The Osprey would be in range but out of season. Most Osprey's depart from the valley by April. Also, the wings may be short for an Osprey. I have never seen a juvenile though.
Juv. Rufous-bellied Eagle has been suggested.
Regards,
Sumit

 

[Michael Frankis]

Hi Sumit,

I don't know about the Ospreys that winter in your area, but British-breeding Ospreys do not normally return to the breeding grounds until their second summer, and presumably remain in the wintering grounds for their first summer. If they do the same elsewhere, a one-year-old Osprey is a possibility.

On the wing length - I also thought a bit short-winged, but (hard to be certain!) it looks to me as though it is missing some primaries with moult; that could make the wing look short

Michael

 

[Jane Turner]

The structure looks all wrong for Osprey.... beyond that I'm stumped

 

[Sumit]

I think we have to seriously consider juvenile Oriental Honey Buzzard based purely on the head shape and the known variability of plumage. That has been the strongest suggestion till date. Rufous-bellied Eagle has also been suggested, based I presume on the mask.
What do you think of OBH? Raptorphiles seem to concentrate on head shape for Honey Buzzards and I am no expert.
Cheers!
sumit

 

[Andrew Rowlands]

I think we have to seriously consider juvenile Oriental Honey Buzzard based purely on the head shape and the known variability of plumage. That has been the strongest suggestion till date. Rufous-bellied Eagle has also been suggested, based I presume on the mask.
What do you think of OBH? Raptorphiles seem to concentrate on head shape for Honey Buzzards and I am no expert.
Cheers!
sumit

Hi Sumit,

OHB was the first thing I thought of, though I'm not happy with the tail barring or the shape of the rear claw - can you see the shape of the nostril on your photo?

Cheers,

Andy.

 

[Edward woodwood]

Rufous-bellied juv. for me Sumit

 

[Michael Frankis]

Hi Andy,

Does this help any?

Michael

can you see the shape of the nostril on your photo?

 

[Andrew Rowlands]

Thanks Michael,

The nostril does look somewhat 'slotted'; though this feature may occur in other raptors in the area (I don't have a Field Guide for SE Asia and Googling for decent pics on a 28k connection is dire!). The bird does not appear to have an obvious supra-orbital ridge (good for Pernis sp.). If it were an OHB then the eye colour would make it an adult.

But the tail pattern???

EDIT - just had a look at Rufous-bellied Eagle - ruled out on nostril and head shapes (obvious supra-orbital) and the leg feathering appears to stop closer to the feet.

Andy.

 

[Andrew Rowlands]

A juv. OHB in a similar pose, for comparison http://kite.center.kl.edu.tw/laurence/birds_pg8.files/DSCN0044_copy.jpg

Andy.

 

[Sumit]

The nostril does look somewhat 'slotted'; though this feature may occur in other raptors in the area (I don't have a Field Guide for SE Asia and Googling for decent pics on a 28k connection is dire!). The bird does not appear to have an obvious supra-orbital ridge (good for Pernis sp.). If it were an OHB then the eye colour would make it an adult.

But the tail pattern???

Andy.

Hi Andy and everyone else,
Maybe the attached close-ups will help.
And thanks Michael for the blow-up. Fortunately, the original image was of reasonable size and may allow us to focus on the key ID features.
Cheers!