On Sun, 23 Nov 1997, Don Baccus wrote:

> At 08:16 AM 11/23/97 -0800, you wrote:
>
> > About 3 years ago in OLY at the Nisqually wildlife
> > Refuge there was a gorgeous male rufous morph..
>
> Given that banding keys desclare that the sex of redtails can't
> be accurately determined when the bird is in the hand, I'm curious
> as to how you determined this was a male?
>
Don--

After serval trips to the Refuge and lots of good views
with different folks and scopes etc., I guessed the
gender based on it's noticeably smaller size than the
other resident redtails. I realize it's impossible to
sex redtails by eyeballing them, but I've spent a lot
of time around falconers who have redtails as falconry
birds, been to meets where there were several r/t's
perched out and had the opportunity to compare them
for size. the males I've seen have been noticeably
smaller than the females..and, up close, size of feet
seems a good determinant..although, I have seen bigger
birds with smallish feet and beaks.. I didn't get a
chance to see the bird pursue quarry, so I can't
comment on it's hunting technique. Most falconers
I know prefer the females, as the larger birds, though
not as agile, tend to crash on through the blackberry canes
in pursuit of game..the smaller males tend to pitch
up and wait for the reflush..


Tom