Steve Mlodinow questioned the identity of the bird seen on our Master
Birder field trip yesterday and photographed by John Tubbs. Steve, it
was a Gyrfalcon, a huge bird with its tail probably extending two
inches beyond its wingtips at rest. When it flew it had the big,
broad tail of a buteo and distinctly broader wings than any Peregrine
or Prairie I've ever seen. It circled round and round over the coyote
in a way I wasn't sure a Peregrine could have done, and I wondered if
the broader wings and larger tail of a Gyr might well be adaptations
for hunting that way, when ptarmigans are trying to hide in dense
willow scrub. We had it close for 10-15 minutes! It also shot off
across the flats in fine falcon fashion on several occasions.

After I wrote this, I saw Charlie Wright's comments on the same bird,
right on the mark. However, I don't think John's treatment of the
photo on the computer enhanced the malar stripe any more than it was
in life. It looked pretty much like the photo, and I guess Gyrfalcons
can look like that! In fact, the only Gyrfalcon I've photographed
digitally (and thus easily accessed on my computer) was the bird at
the West 90 a few years ago, and it had a malar stripe only the
slightest bit less contrasty than that of our bird. I guess you can
also conclude that there is still variation beyond the fine photos in
Brian Wheeler's hawk book.

Dennis

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Dennis Paulson
1724 NE 98 St.
Seattle, WA 98115
206-528-1382
dennispaulson at comcast.net



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