Chestnut-shouldered Goshawk
Erythrotriorchis buergersi
A very rare and little known, powerful raptor of foothill and lower montane forest interior. Black crown, dark wings with chestnut edged shoulders, heavily streaked chest and barred belly. Yellow legs, eye and base to the bill. Often hunts birds either from soaring or from a perched position. The common morph adult is distinctive but black morph or juveniles are similar to the equivalent forms of Meyer’s Goshawk, but Chestnut-shouldered Goshawk is usually found at lower elevations and has a yellow rather than dark eye. Call is a loud upslurred note similar to that of Meyer’s Goshawk.
Taxonomy
- Scientific name
- Erythrotriorchis buergersi
- Authority
- (Reichenow, 1914)
- Order
- Accipitriformes
- Family
- Accipitridae
- Genus
- Erythrotriorchis
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- stable
Photos
Distribution
Other Birds
Socotra Cisticola
Cisticola haesitatus
Small, pale brown, heavily streaked cisticola. Endemic to Socotra, where it inhabits low shrublands and other habitats with significant bushy cover, mostly at low elevations. The song is a long series of dull “zit” notes, often given in flight; very similar to the song of the widespread Zitting Cisticola, which is not found on Socotra. Within its range, can only be confused with Socotra Warbler, but easily distinguished by the paler coloration and well-defined streaking.
Great Grebe
Podiceps major
Huge grebe with a long dagger-like bill, a dark gray head, and long, thin rufous neck. The face is paler gray in the nonbreeding season. Inhabits large open areas of water including large rivers and coastal lagoons. Outside of the breeding season may be found on estuaries and along the coast.
Hawfinch
Coccothraustes coccothraustes
Unique, chunky finch. Note the massive bill (steely gray in summer, pinkish in winter) and blue-gray hindneck, like a shawl on an orangey head. Broad white tail tip and white wing band show mainly in flight. Despite distinctive appearance, shy and easily overlooked. Favors mixed and deciduous mature woodland, especially with beech, oak, and hornbeam, where tends to feed and perch quietly, high in the canopy. Also feeds on the ground in autumn and winter, sometimes forming single-species flocks. Gives high-pitched “tsik!” and lower ticking calls.
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