Beautiful Broad-wings, Free for Flight

Here they come, our stars of the day...The hawks, in the boxes with the towels over the top. LOL

Oh and yes, our star rehab team, HAPPINEST!

Setting the boxes in the best shade available to minimize stress.

The Female BW is larger in body, seen later in a side by side pic. She sports a beautiful buffy shoulder, under throat upper breast area, and across the upper under-wing. Note the striped tail, and lower under-wing.  It is nice to see the dramatic colors of this after first year bird, with it's darker eye,  and well defined outer dark outline around the wings.

 

Here she is in another stance, with the wing dropped.  The lovely colors and striping under the wing might not be visible at all from the distances we often see them. but sometimes, that band that goes around the entire perimeter of the wing often is.  As well as the bands in the tail, when the sun shines through them.

 

 

The light panel in the outer wing sometimes resembles that of a Red-shouldered Hawk, as we have discussed before.  This indicates they are still immature BW's.

 

 

Her Mantle displays her lovely chocolate coloring, and again the banding, in the wings and tail, with the wing window plainly showing the sun shining through.

 

The Bluer eyes of Austin, the Male BW, indicate a younger, first year bird.  His size helps say: male. Smaller by a lot than his counterpart.  The Redder tones in the dark chocolate are a little visible. His breast is clearer.  Not significant to his maleness, just to his being his individual self.  There is a variety  in the plumage, from bird to bird.  They are not carbon copies of one another.  So it is important to look for other features to ID him. 

This photo shows the great difference in size.  Even the female's talons are larger.  Tail longer.

What is always remarkable to us as hawk-watchers, is the relative smallness of these Hawks.  They really aren't as large as we imagine them to be when we spot them way up in the sky. But as Bill Haley said today, "no wonder they sometimes are difficult to see way out there. No wonder they disappear into the blue sky."

A few more pics from the morning, to follow.  I'll give you stats, later on next post, for the day. 

So much thanks to our friends at HAPPINEST Wildlife Rehabilitation & Rescue, Sherry Turner Teas and Alix Parks and friends for bringing us these 2 marvelous birds! And for all the work they do to assure some of these birds are able to survive to fly free,  and hopefully migrate this year!  We will be updating their information and providing links here on the blog soon.

Thanks all who came and look forward to another upcoming event before the season's close!

Help us to KEEP LOOKING UP!!!\
Jimmy and Cynthia