Ashland Hawk Watch Update Week 10: Highlights and Raptor Identification Practice (Nov. 2-8, 2024)

[@richardking2397]

Hi David, Thanks for the update. I was at the hawk watch for two of the days so it was great to see nice photos of some of the birds. And remember, it is always better to be watching hawks than hawking watches......🦅🦅

[@RobertCassidy-b8x]

I want to say, this channel is a very important channel. There is nothing like it that I've found. We ate using it already in the field. - Indiana Birders

[@LycoBirds]

Great to hear!

[@PhilRushworth]

So true!!!

[@lauraceperley1280]

Come to PA! We are getting a few GOEAs

[@anti0918]

#2 definitely Sharp-shinned

[@lauraceperley1280]

Are goea closer to buteos than eagles? I’ve noticed they are shown next to the BAEA less and less in new books. Just curious. Thanks, you are a amazing teacher.

[@LycoBirds]

I don't think that Golden Eagles are more closely related to Buteos, but Golden Eagles and Bald Eagles aren't as closely related as you might think based on them both being called "eagles". A recently published study found that Cooper's Hawks and American Goshawks are more closely related to harriers than they are to Sharp-shinned Hawks (thus changing the genus of the first two). The paper has figures at the end that map out all the relationships between raptors. You can search and find the paper: Catanach, T. A., Halley, M. R., and S. Pirro. 2024. Enigmas no longer: using Ultraconserved Elements to place several unusual hawk taxa and address the non-monophyly of the genus Accipiter (Accipitriformes: Accipitridae). Biological Journal of the Linnaean Society, blae028.

[@lauraceperley1280]

🎉 Thank you. I got the paper. Wow! Amazing stuff and well above my 50 year-old education, before DNA was invented. Ha ha. Goldens and Bonellis (which i’ve seen in Iberia) are buddies. And Bald eagles are closest to White-tails (i’ve seen in Europe). And those pairs haven’t been related since the oligocene. Gracious. Bird names are getting as temporary as mushroom names. 😮thank you!

[@johnsonjunior547]

As someone new who doesn't have much freetime atm to learn hawks in the real world (yet). How difficult would you say these pictures are? I feel like I do pretty well but then I'll see others online or in books that just stump me when i quiz myself. Not for this video in particular but just in general with this series.

[@LycoBirds]

I think most of the photos in these summary videos are fairly easy, because I am mostly choosing the best photos from the week.