Unidentified raptor (owl?) - Hampshire UK (3 Viewers)

[hatchnut]

Apologies that I have no photos to help - just a bad description!

Today on the South Downs in Hampshire (near Queen Elizabeth Country Park) there were a number of red kites (later joined by a buzzard) circling on a thermal. Above them there was a smaller bird also circling. It was very pale underneath. It was smaller than buzzard and red kites, but larger than sparrowhawk, and tail was too long short and broad for sparrowhawk. Unfortunately it was hard to get a good look at any of it other than make out its shape and colouring.

A few members of our group thought it was a Short Eared Owl. I wasn’t too certain but not sure what it was otherwise. It certainly did look pretty owl shaped. Would a SEO be circling on a thermal like that, and that high up? I’ve never seen one before so don’t have any reference for what it would look like in real life or what their behaviour might be. The shape and what we could see of the colouring didn’t seem to match any of the birds of prey on our ID guide (there were no owls on the guide).

Does anyone know if SEO is likely here or otherwise what it might have been?

Thanks in advance for any wisdom you can offer!

 

[Simon G]

It certainly did look pretty owl shaped

What features of an owl did you notice?

 

[hatchnut]

What features of an owl did you notice?

It had a fairly broad tail, but rectangular-ish in shape rather than spread in a fan. It also had quite long wings which were sort of pointy at the ends. Couldn’t make out much of a head myself but a couple in the group said from what they could see, it seemed rounded - although another said they didn’t think it had a ‘flat’ face so there’s disagreement on the head end!

 

[Southern Viking]

It was smaller than buzzard and red kites, but larger than sparrowhawk, and tail was too long and broad for sparrowhawk.

Sounds more like a Goshawk to me, but they generally have proportionally slightly shorter tails than Sparrowhawks (not as proportionally or actually shorter as a Short-eared Owl though)

 

[hatchnut]

Sounds more like a Goshawk to me, but they generally have proportionally slightly shorter tails than Sparrowhawks (not as proportionally or actually shorter as a Short-eared Owl though)

Sorry - just realised I typed too long and broad for sparrowhawk but I meant too short and broad! What makes you think Goshawk? (Not disagreeing just wondering how you got there!)

 

[Southern Viking]

Sorry - just realised I typed too long and broad for sparrowhawk but I meant too short and broad! What makes you think Goshawk? (Not disagreeing just wondering how you got there!)

Purely the size compared to other species and the very pale appearance below (the fact it was compared to a Sparrowhawk at all probably swayed me). Short-eared Owls can fly pretty high. Attached some photos of them doing so in West Sussex with Carrion Crow and Red Kites. When I've seen them personally they were still quite active and "flappy" rather than thermalling in the way that raptors do, and generally they fought with any raptor they got anywhere near, but that could just be personal experience.

 

[stevethehydra]

I wonder about Peregrine? Short tail, can look pale underneath, pointed wings (which I wouldn't describe any owl as), size fits. I've seen one soaring on thermals with Red Kites and was a bit confused as to what it was at first!

 

[Jinac]

Your description reminds me the Black-winged kite but in UK... I don't think no

 

[TheBlackGrouse]

When I've seen them personally they were still quite active and "flappy" rather than thermalling in the way that raptors do, and generally they fought with any raptor they got anywhere near, but that could just be personal experience.

That's my experience too with Short-eared owls, at some places there are heavy fights with Kestrels because they hunt the same prey.

In general they stay low, soaring is extremely rare. On the other hand, these are remarkable birds, sometimes they can be seen at sea in the middle of the day, coming from England and flying towards the Dutch coast. I've seen it once, it's that weird that a complete group of experienced birders didn't have a clue at first

 

[Patudo]

I wonder about Peregrine? Short tail, can look pale underneath, pointed wings (which I wouldn't describe any owl as), size fits. I've seen one soaring on thermals with Red Kites and was a bit confused as to what it was at first!

You may be on to something there. A juv peregrine would also look longer-tailed and in the right sun, pale brownish below and not as grey-backed as an adult; with "sails fully set" for maximum lift might look broader-winged and -tailed than the typical falcon shape, and if at great height (which they certainly can get up to) could look somewhat short-necked.

The best way to tell birds of prey is very often via pattern of flight. Buzzards, especially when thermalling, seem staid, red kites more buoyant, sparrowhawks are a visibly lighter bird that flap more, peregrines have a higher cruising speed than the other raptors and an effortless style of flight that can be very distinctive. Quite often you can fixate on a specific spot in the sky and tell what it is. If you're not sure, the best thing to do is often watch and watch some more, until the bird finally vanishes. It may do something that reveals what it is; it may come closer for more identifying features to be seen. Watching all the common species for long enough to be confident you're familiar with how they look at different distances and angles - and also wind and weather conditions, as this affects how they "trim their sails" - will give you a solid frame of reference for when something out of the ordinary appears.