Category Archives: Birds

King Vulture

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The King Vulture is an uncommon, large, and spectacular bird of lowland tropical forest, mainly in wilder areas and not around human habitation. Most often seen soaring overhead in mid-late morning, often fairly high up; rarely seen perched. Striking adult has a colorful head and neck, piercing white eyes, and mostly white plumage with a black trailing edge to the wings and tail. Here is a captive, perched vulture at Carolina Raptor Center, North Carolina.

King Vulture 

Perched Golden Eagle

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The Golden Eagle is one of the largest, fastest, nimblest raptors in North America. Lustrous gold feathers gleam on the back of its head and neck; a powerful beak and talons advertise its hunting prowess. Here is one in captivity at Carolina Raptor Center, North Carolina.

Golden Eagle Perched

Spectacled Owl Female Closeup

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Spectacled Owls are unique owls, so named because of the white spectacles around their yellow eyes, highlighting their brown facial disk. The bill is cream colored. A white stripe around the upper throat divides the color of the body, with the chest being dark brown. Here is a female at the Carolina Raptor Center, North Carolina.

Spectacled Owl Female Closeup

Red-shouldered Hawk Female Fluttering Wings

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The red-shouldered hawk is a medium-sized hawk. Its breeding range spans eastern North America and along the coast of California and northern to northeastern-central Mexico. With large, broad wings with long tails and heavy bodies, female red-shouldered hawks are larger than males. Here is a female fluttering its wings at Carolina Raptor Center, North Carolina.

Red-shouldered Hawk Female Fluttering Wings

Red-shouldered Hawk Female Fluffing Wings

Bald Eagle

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The Bald Eagle has been the national emblem of the United States since 1782 and a spiritual symbol for native people for far longer than that. These regal birds aren’t really bald, but their white-feathered heads gleam in contrast to their chocolate-brown body and wings.

Some bald eagles in captivity at Carolina Raptor Center, Huntersville, North Carolina.

Bald Eagle Posing

Bald Eagle

Eurasian Eagle Owl

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The Eurasian eagle-owl is a species of eagle-owl that resides in much of Eurasia. It is one of the largest species of owl, and females can grow to a total length of 30 inches, with a wingspan of 6 ft. 2 in, with males being slightly smaller. This bird has distinctive ear tufts, with upper parts that are mottled with darker blackish coloring and tawny. The wings and tail are barred and the underparts are a variably hued buff, streaked with darker coloring.

Here is a male Eurasian eagle-owl at the Carolina Raptor Center, North Carolina.

Eurasian Eagle Owl Male

Eurasian Eagle Owl Male Piercing Eyes

Eyes of the Lanner Falcon

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Outstandingly maneuverable, Lanner Falcons use their large tails and relatively low wing loading to perform exceptionally to the lure and can take a range of small birds as prey. The piercing eyes of a Lanner Falcon at the Carolina Raptor Center, North Carolina.

Eyes of a Lanner Falcon Male

Lanner Falcon Male Closeup

Lanner Falcon

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The Lanner Falcon is a large bird of prey that breeds in Africa, southeast Europe and Asia and is a bird of open country and savanna. Males and females look alike, but the browner young birds resemble Saker Falcons even more. However, Sakers have a lighter top of the head and less clear head-side patterns. Here is a male Lanner Falcon in captivity at Carolina Raptor Center, North Carolina.

Lanner Falcon Male Perched on a Rock

Tethered Lanner Falcon Male

Broad-winged Hawk

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A small, stocky raptor with black-and-white bands on the tail, the Broad-winged Hawk is a bird of the forest interior and can be hard to see during the nesting season. Its call is a piercing, two-parted whistle. Here is a captive male at the Carolina Raptor Center, Huntersville, North Carolina.

Broad-winged Hawk Male Looking at You

Broad-winged Hawk Male Looking Away

American Kestrel

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The American Kestrel is the smallest falcon in North America, weighing 3-6 ounces. American Kestrels are one of only three raptor species in North America where males and females look very different from each other. Males have blue-hued wings and one black bar on their orange tail feathers; females have orange wings with black stripes and many black bars on their orange tail feathers.

Here is a female kestrel at Carolina Raptor Center.

American Kestrel Female

Barn Owl

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With its ghostly appearance, rasping shrieks, and habit of roosting in such places as church belfries, the Barn Owl has attracted much superstition. However, it is really a good omen for farmers who find it in their barns, for it preys chiefly on mice and rats.

A female version on display at Carolina Raptor Center, Huntersville, North Carolina.

Barn Owl Female

Barn Owl Female Close Up

A Barred Owl Portrait

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The Barred Owl is a nocturnal bird. It hides in dense foliage during the day, usually high up. May also roost on a branch close to a broad tree-trunk, or in a natural tree hole. May be very aggressive when defending a nest. Here is female version – perched at Carolina Raptor Center, North Carolina.

Barred Owl Female Perched