birding-aus

RE: Re:[Birding-Aus] Brown Goshawk/Collared Sparrowhawk?

To: Anthony Molyneux <>, "" <>
Subject: RE: Re:[Birding-Aus] Brown Goshawk/Collared Sparrowhawk?
From: Peter Shute <>
Date: Sun, 7 Jun 2009 20:03:10 +1000
I think I agree with this (CSH and BG), but I'm not sure about the top bird in 
the first photo.

I must admit I've been confused by the term "square tail".  Does this refer to 
the "sharpness" of the corners, or the straightness of the end? Looking at the 
sihouettes of both species in figures 8.3 and 8.4 of Stephen Debus's "Birds of 
Prey of Australia", I'm thinking it's both but mainly the latter.

In all his drawings of spread Collared Sparrowhawk tails, the tips are in a 
dead straight line - there's no bulging out of the inner feathers at all.  He 
descibes it as "square or notched".  The inner tail feathers of the upper bird 
in the fist photo do very definitely bulge outwards, but not as much as in his 
drawings of spread Brown Goshawk tails.  The lower bird's ragged tail has a 
very definite bulge.  I don't know how much regrowing feathers can affect this 
bulge.  What order do they moult in?

He says the Brown Goshawk has a longer head and neck, and the upper bird in the 
first photo does appear to have a shorter head/neck than the lower.

He also says that the CSH wing has a more rounded trailing edge, and this also 
appears to be true in the first photo.

There are also those who say you simply can't tell without a close look at the 
middle toe.

Peter Shute

________________________________________
From:   On 
Behalf Of Anthony Molyneux 
Sent: Sunday, 7 June 2009 3:18 PM
To: 
Subject: Brown Goshawk/Collared Sparrowhawk?

My opinion is two females.  An adult female Collared S/hawk chasing an immature 
female Goshawk and most likely trying to push the immature out of her 
territory.==============================www.birding-aus.org
birding-aus.blogspot.com

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