I agree with all of you on that this quiz was TOUGH! I admit it, when featherbrain first sent me this photo, I guessed wrong on its ID. After some study, I was convinced that the bird is indeed identifiable from the photo, but that doesn't mean that it's an easy quiz!
By the upright stance, large size, broad shoulders, and very broad head, we can tell that this is a large raptor of some sort. It appears to be all dark with white scapulars. At this point, I was sure that it was a Red-tailed Hawk. Red-tailed Hawks have those diagnostic white scapulars that make the characteristic "V" on the hawks back. Well, soon I learned that I was too hasty in my identification. I wasn't paying attention to structure. That head is HUGE. If I had been paying attention to that, I would've realized how many species I could have eliminated just from structure. That broad head in comparison to the shoulders is only shown by a few ABA regular raptors: Ferruginous Hawk, Bald Eagle, Golden Eagle, Steller's Sea-Eagle, and White-tailed Eagle. Ferruginous Hawks never have that dark of plumage. Young Bald Eagles can be pretty dark, and can have variable amounts of white on their wings and mantle. Usually Bald Eagles don't have such strong white scapulars, but they can vary a bit. The lack of white tail eliminates Steller's Sea Eagle, which shows a pale tail in all plumages. A White-tailed Eagle wouldn't have strong white scapulars like that either. So, that leaves us with Bald Eagle.
(If you're not convinced, I can post a supplemental photo of the same bird.)
Featherbrain photographed this young Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus).
Once again, I'm having some computer/email problems, and won't be able to post the results until this evening. Sorry!
The next quiz won't be posted until next Sunday, just FYI.
Art Thread
