Looking for the Leucistic: A Unique Looking Red-tailed Hawk

Last night one of my birding buddies, Eric Peterson, emailed some photos of a unique looking hawk he found just a few miles from our homes--at a place called Art Dye Park in American Fork, Utah. As soon as I opened the image I knew I might have a chance to see my very first leucistic (lew-sis-tic) Red-tailed Hawk, a hawk with a condition that causes reduced pigmentation (coloring). Leucism is not albinism because albinos actually have pink eyes and leucistic animals do not.  Eric had seen the hawk just before sunset so I crossed my fingers and hoped it would stick around until the morning so I could get a look at it.

I drove to the area where it was last seen by Eric and found no hawks. I decided to check out the areas surrounding the park while waiting for the sun to crest the mountains. I checked out the nearby golf course, Fox Hollow. I found a mix of ducks crowding a small part of a pond that had not frozen over. I took roll and identified about seven species of waterfowl in the little water hole. I drove back to Art Dye Park and came up empty again. I checked out another nearby park and came up empty on hawks. A resident Western Screech-Owl, however, was sunning himself in his south-facing winter roost as the sun was rising. It's pretty well camouflaged. You wouldn't know it was there if it weren't first pointed out by Chickadees and Scrub-Jays who were squawking at it.

Western Screech-Owl Highland, UT

Here's a closer look after the sunlight hit the owl more directly.

Western Screech-Owl Highland, UT

As I was walking back to my truck I had a Northern Pintail flyover. It circled above once to give me notice so when it circled again I captured some images.

Drake Northern Pintail Highland, UT

Drake Northern Pintail Highland, UT

I checked lots of trees surrounding the park on my way out and still found no hawks. I decided I needed to leave for work and made my way to a main road. Of course, I was glancing over at distant trees along the way. In a split second a vertically oriented white spot in a tree about 200 yards away caught my attention. I did a double and triple take since I was driving and couldn't glance for long. I turned off the main road and got within about 100 yards of what I was hoping was the target hawk. I could hardly contain myself when I got my binoculars on it and it turned out to be the hawk. The image below was taken from half the distance of when I first spotted the hawk. I was quite fortunate to notice the bird from that original distance while driving.

Leucistic Red-tailed Hawk Highland, UT

I approached a little closer to get a better look. What a beautiful sight--seeing such a familiar species of bird in such an unusual plumage.

Leucistic Red-tailed Hawk Highland, UT

The hawk took flight and showed upper and lower sides of all but the tail. I noticed that at least one tail feather was all white as well as the tip of one other tail feather. The rest of the tail feathers showed a rather typical rufous color on the upper side.

Leucistic Red-tailed Hawk Highland, UT

Leucistic Red-tailed Hawk Highland, UT

Leucistic Red-tailed Hawk Highland, UT

Leucistic Red-tailed Hawk Highland, UT

Leucistic Red-tailed Hawk Highland, UT

The hawk perched again soon after it took flight. There are lots of trees in which the hawk can rest and from which it can perch hunt. Large fields provide good hunting grounds and a bit of a cushion from human traffic. I think there is a good chance it will stick around.

Leucistic Red-tailed Hawk Highland, UT

Way Too Easy For Three Rare Bird Encounters

One of my good birding friends observed a young Long-tailed Duck along one of the jetties surrounding the Provo Marina at Utah Lake State Park on November 25th. That is an extremely rare duck for Utah County. I had never seen one in Utah County so I wanted to observe, photograph, and add it to my Utah County life bird list. Unfortunately, my schedule did not accommodate "my wants" so I prepared myself mentally for not getting that one. About a week later the duck was still being seen in the same area. I had some time one afternoon so I made the 20-minute drive from home to Utah Lake State Park in Provo, Utah. When I first arrived at the park I noticed a Horned Grebe in non-breeding plumage right in the Marina. Horned Grebes are not as rare as Long-tailed Ducks, but they are still very uncommon since they generally are seen only while they are passing through the area in spring and fall/winter during their annual migrations north and south. I fully expected the grebe to fly if I exited my truck (they are nervous little guys) so I observed it and took photos from within my truck. I then went and located the continuing Long-tailed Duck and got some photos from the truck and then as I stood on the jetty practically right next to the duck. It dove and fed on the bottom of the lake as I watched. Here's a series of images of the cute little diving duck. Skies were overcast so the colors are muted.

Most people will tell you they have to observe a rare duck like that through a scope while it sits out on a lake hundreds of yards away. It was way too easy to photograph such a rare duck.

On my way off the jetty and back past the marina I noticed the Grebe was closer to the shore. I decided to exit the truck and get better photos this time. Once again, it was way too easy to photograph an uncommon and rather skittish bird.

Since I was already in the area, I exited Utah Lake State Park and made an immediate right turn onto the Provo Airport Dike Road to make the four mile drive around the airport. It's a very popular birding location because Utah Lake is on one side of the dike and a mote is on the other side as it makes a loop around Provo Airport. Its sort of a migrant and rare bird trap because of the habitat and location.

I found three separate Great Horned Owls during that drive--all three within about fifteen minutes. None of the owls flushed from their roosts during my observations of them. Great Horned Owls aren't exactly rare, but watching one cast a pellet (aka hack a fur ball) is a unique birding moment. How many of you have seen something like that happen? This image was captured right before the pellet fell from the owl's mouth and down into a thick stand of phragmite. I like this image because it shows the not-so-great, tiny tongue of the Great Horned Owl. If I had to guess I'd say its a female due to the extent of the tawny coloring around the eyes. The best way to tell is by seeing a pair together. The females are noticeably larger than their male counterparts.

Here's an image of the third and final Great Horned Owl from that day. I like how the plumage of the owl blends in with its chosen  perch and how the blue sky in the background drops down and transitions to a soft brown from the phragmites surrounding the marsh behind the owl. It ties in with the brown leaves remaining on the tree in that corner of the image.

Candidates For A Raptor Calendar

After a number of suggestions from friends and family I'm thinking about creating a calendar with some of my favorite raptor images. I'm sharing a sampling of some of my favorites and would like some feedback from you so I can narrow them down. I'm thinking about placing the birds in the months that fit them well in my mind. For example, Bald Eagles, Rough-legged Hawks, and Merlins are more northern (Alaska & Canada) raptors so we tend to see them in the lower US states more during the winter months. Sharp-shinned Hawk nest in higher elevations during spring and summer so they return to lower elevations (and backyards as they prey on birds at feeders) in the fall and winter. American Kestrel rings American and its the most colorful Falcon of North America so why not share it during July when America recognizes it's independence? Here's the line up I'm considering so far.

January: Prairie Falcon
February: Bald Eagle
March: Merlin
April: Golden Eagle
May: Cooper's Hawk
June: Osprey
July: American Kestrel
August: Swainson's Hawk
September: Sharp-shinned Hawk
October: Peregrine Falcon
November: Red-tailed Hawk
December: Ferruginous Hawk

I've included multiple images for each species so please reference the captions and let me know which would best represent a species in a calendar image.

I also love Owls. Should I include owls or would they be considered for their own calendar?

Please share your feedback by commenting at the end of the post or sending me a personal email (jeffcooper7@gmail.com). Thanks for your feedback.

Prairie Falcon Hunkered and Fluffed Up While Braving Freezing Temperatures in Vineyard, UT

Prairie Falcon in Flight in Lehi, UT

Prairie Falcon in Flight Utah County, UT

Prairie Falcon Utah County, UT

Bald Eagle (one) at Lindon Marina in Lindon, UT

Bald Eagle (two) at Lindon Marina in Lindon, UT

Bald Eagle (three) at Lindon Marina in Lindon, UT

Bald Eagle at Farmington Bay WMA Davis County, UT

Bald Eagle Mt Carmel, UT

Bald Eagle Near Panguitch, UT

Merlin Elberta, UT

Merlin Sandy, UT

Merlin (one) Highland, UT

Merlin (two) Highland, UT

Merlin (three) Highland, UT

Merlin (four) Highland, UT

Golden Eagle South Jordan, UT

Golden Eagle Palmyra, UT

Cooper's Hawk (one) Pleasant Grove, UT

Cooper's Hawk (two) Pleasant Grove, UT

Young Cooper's Hawk Pleasant Grove, UT

Cooper's Hawk Huntington Beach, CA

Cooper's Hawk  Utah County, UT

Osprey Utah County, UT

Osprey Carrying Nest Material to Nest in Utah County, UT

Osprey (two) Carrying Nest Material (watching me) to Nest in Utah County, UT

Osprey (three) Carrying Nest Material to Nest in Utah County, UT

Osprey Punta Allen, Mexico

Osprey Provo, UT

American Kestrel (one) at Farmington Bay WMA Davis County, UT

American Kestrel Pleasant Grove, UT

American Kestrel (two) at Farmington Bay WMA Davis County, UT

American Kestrel Pleasant Grove, UT

American Kestrel Lehi, UT

American Kestrel (three) Farmington Bay WMA Davis County, UT

American Kestrel Provo, UT

Swainson's Hawk Springville, UT

Swainson's Hawk Lakeshore, UT

Swainson's Hawk Pleasant Grove, UT

Swainson's Hawk Saratoga Springs, UT

Swainson's Hawk Pleasant Grove, UT

Swainson's Hawk American Fork, UT

Sharp-shinned Hawk Cedar Hills, UT

Sharp-shinned Hawk St George, UT

Sharp-shinned Hawk South Jordan, UT (This one might be a good winter image with the ice crystals on the post)

Sharp-shinned Hawk Pleasant Grove, UT

Peregrine Falcon (one) Lehi, UT

Peregrine Falcon (two) Lehi, UT

Peregrine Falcon South Jordan, UT

Peregrine Falcon (three) Lehi, UT

Intermediate-morph Western Red-tailed Hawk Lehi, UT

Western Red-tailed Hawk Lehi, UT

Ferruginous Hawk Emery County, UT

Ferruginous Hawk (One) Lila Canyon Rd Emery County, UT

Ferruginous Hawk (Two) Lila Canyon Rd Emery County, UT