According to W. Clark's Field Guide to Hawks of North America (Peterson
Guide series), what is called a "brown morph" is an immature gray morph
Gyr. The two terms are synonymous. There is no such thing as a "brown
morph" adult. (Which means that it's not really a "morph," since that
word implies permanence. Gray morph, white morph, black morph, brown
phase of gray morph, I suppose, if you care about stuff like that. I was
just repeating Clark's terminology when I called it "brown morph.")

Chris Hill
Everett, WA
cehill at u.washington.edu

On 24 Jan 1997, Jerry Blinn wrote:

> Chris McInerney:
>
> Re: the Samish Gyrfalcon:
>
> I assume we are saying the same thing: you say "brown-phase" and I say "juvenile
> gray-morph." I'm just looking for either confirmation or an education.
>
> I saw heavy dark streaks on white, as opposed to narrow white streaks on dark.
>
> GREAT BIRD!
>
> Jerry Blinn
> Silverdale
>
>
> E-mail from: Jerry Blinn, 24-Jan-1997
>
>