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Steve and All,
Yesterday, Brad Townsend, Secretary of the Utah Falconers
and Raptor Breeders Association, responded to my inquiry regarding a
possible escaped falconer's bird. He has not heard that anyone is
missing a Harris's Hawk, but will circulate the report throughout his
organization.
Brad also digitally zoomed in on the photo I forwarded to
him and couldn't see evidence of jesses or a band. However, I agree with
you that the toes and talons look unnatural.
Kris
----- Original Message -----
Sent: Tuesday, June 29, 2004 9:51
PM
Subject: Re: [BirdTalk] Photos of
Harris's Hawk in Draper
I responded earlier to Trish that a Harris's Hawk would be extremely
unusual here in northern Utah, but that bird certainly is one. I don't
know of another western hawk that has that coloration, including the dark
rusty leggings, not the auburn rust of a Ferruginous, plus the feathers on the
Ferruginous cover clear down to the toes, which doesn't occur on this
bird.
My question is - what is the gadget on the front talons of this
bird? It looks like some sort of a metal clamp or jess. Could this
be an escaped captive bird that someone has had? And the fact that it
seems to be familiar with a wading pool. Because the Harris's Hawk is a
Lower Sonoran bird, it would be so unusual to have a wild one come all this
way north and so much higher in altitude all on its own.
The next question is - is the bird still in the neighborhood or has it
disappeared, possibly flown back to its pen? I was down in the area
Monday where Trish mentioned that it had occurred on, but didn't see it.
Good photos, Trish.
--Steve Carr
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