Buzzard Observations

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

ThunderCat wrote: »

In all the time they were in the air I didnt see them dive once..

They don't actually dive that often. They are quite slow and seldom dive from any higher than a high branch of a tree.
County Louth is a great spot for tham with many nesting pairs.

Feargal as Luimneach

eire_dd wrote: »

HI again, so i was back in kileen today, watching the sky's through the whole game(much to the annoyance of my partners) on the 14th tee box and bang there it was, it flew right over us. but now i'm not sure if it was a buzzard. Again i know very little about birds but it looked a little dark compared to pics i have seen. Any ideas or comments ?

Buzzards vary in colour alot: dark, light, intermediate, juvenile There is no set "correct plumage type" ( a common feature among many raptor species) unlike a bird like a robin for example..........

Birdnuts

Relieved to see my local pair of buzzards yesterday after a few weeks of no sightings - i was beginning to get paranoid given the sheer amount of bad news concerning birds of prey in this country recently.

LostCovey

Birdnuts wrote: »

Relieved to see my local pair of buzzards yesterday after a few weeks of no sightings - i was beginning to get paranoid given the sheer amount of bad news concerning birds of prey in this country recently.

Very normal breeding behaviour for Buzzards.

They go very quiet and low profile after the first eggs are laid, you would think they had vanished.

LostCovey

Birdnuts

LostCovey wrote: »

Very normal breeding behaviour for Buzzards.

They go very quiet and low profile after the first eggs are laid, you would think they had vanished.

LostCovey

Don't both parents incubate the egg??:)

LostCovey

Birdnuts wrote: »

Don't both parents incubate the egg??:)

They do, but they just get very discreet, with the birds slipping in and out of the breeding area very quietly.

LostCovey

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

I can't agree that they go quiet after the first eggs are laid. I have watched Buzzards closely for over 15 years, including a 3 year project on them, and live within sight of a nesting pair. Their calls actually increase once the mating bond is renewed and continues until sometime after the young have fledged. The birds call as they approach the nest throughout the day.

E39MSport

I went for a walk on Monday morning and was drawn by very loud calling coming from a wood.
Turned out to be an incubating Buzzard on a nest calling for food. It's partner showed up with food and then departed. All went quiet.
I got very close. Stunning. Hadn't got my bins with me though.

LostCovey

E39MSport wrote: »

I went for a walk on Monday morning and was drawn by very loud calling coming from a wood.
Turned out to be an incubating Buzzard on a nest calling for food. It's partner showed up with food and then departed. All went quiet.
I got very close. Stunning. Hadn't got my bins with me though.

Ours slip in and out very quietly, unless you go near the nest, then they are very vocal and circle overhead. They were the same last year.

LostCovey

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

LostCovey wrote: »

Ours slip in and out very quietly, unless you go near the nest, then they are very vocal and circle overhead. They were the same last year.

LostCovey

Yours seem to buck the trend on the calling front.:)

Boomshakalak

We have 3 buzzards who regularly sail over our house in North Donegal, always seems to be 3 at any one time.We have a rookery about 200 yds away around the farm down the road and have seen the crows bullying the buzzards away from the nesting area on numerous occasions, pretty mental.
It`s usually a bunch of crows but have seen single crows hassling the much larger buzzard who usually just buggers off.

thefly

I cant believe it. I only read this thread last night. I had to drive through Arklow today and on the N11 a Buzzard takes off and fly's 20 feet above my car. Amazing:eek: I had never seen one and went on to this thread last night to see where I might spot one. I had planned to go somewhere in a couple of weeks and the very next day one fly's over my car, it's crazy. Going back out with the camera on the weekend

E39MSport

thefly wrote: »

I cant believe it. I only read this thread last night. I had to drive through Arklow today and on the N11 a Buzzard takes off and fly's 20 feet above my car. Amazing:eek: I had never seen one and went on to this thread last night to see where I might spot one. I had planned to go somewhere in a couple of weeks and the very next day one fly's over my car, it's crazy. Going back out with the camera on the weekend

Excellent.

On a sunny day you may only see them soaring up high. There's quite a few of them about the North Kildare area for sure.

Enjoy.

E39MSport

The local Buzzards have been missing for a good while now.

I assume they are staying local to their nest feeding youngsters. Means the nest is nowhere near me

Anyway, saw them soaring yesterday with 2 young birds. Very happy to see that. They had 3 chicks last year afaik.

Great to see them thriving especially given the bad fortune of some of the other raptor species of late.

Mothman

I've merged the new thread into the previous thread.

snowstreams

Are there any buzzard strongholds in the west yet? I've only ever seen buzzards in meath Louth. Am hoping i might see some soon in Galway or mayo.
Are they slow to spread geographically in general?

Feargal as Luimneach

Here's a young buzzard who got trapped in a larsen trap. Luckily the farmer is sound enough and got us to check it out to see it wasn't hurt after it's ordeal. It wasn't, just some minor damage to tail feathers and primary feathers. (you can see how blunt it's tail feathers are).
This is a young bird: Lack of distinct band at edge of tail is key feature, streaking on breast rather than barring, paler colour of bird ( paleness of bird however not a good indicator as you can get pale adult morphs!).
We released the bird and it flew off. I must admit I gave a big cheer once it flew off.

E39MSport

snowstreams wrote: »

Are there any buzzard strongholds in the west yet? I've only ever seen buzzards in meath Louth. Am hoping i might see some soon in Galway or mayo.
Are they slow to spread geographically in general?

Not sure. Irish Birding has reports in Galway.

They can be difficult to spot though despite their size. Keep your eyes pealed very high up on a calm warm day.

Mothman

E39MSport wrote: »

Not sure. Irish Birding has reports in Galway.

They can be difficult to spot though despite their size. Keep your eyes pealed very high up on a calm warm day.

In my experience, usually heard before being seen

Gaspode

We have buzzards back again this year (D15), but they've moved nesting site to a field up the road a bit. I would have thought they would have returned to the same nest.
No sign of any young yet though.

ytpe2r5bxkn0c1

Buzzards sometimes build or reconstruct more than one nest in a season. Some years they'll use a new one, others it's a reconstructed older one.

There should be chicks at this stage in the year.

Connacht

@ snowstreams

There have been some sightings in Mayo, but not many. They would seem to be coming in from the south and east (logically), as I have reports from Ballina / Foxford direction, on the one hand, and Ballinrobe / Hollymount on the other. Have not heard of any in the large square N of Westport or W of Ballina (Erris). Have not seen any in Mayo myself.

Birdnuts

Connacht wrote: »

@ snowstreams

There have been some sightings in Mayo, but not many. They would seem to be coming in from the south and east (logically), as I have reports from Ballina / Foxford direction, on the one hand, and Ballinrobe / Hollymount on the other. Have not heard of any in the large square N of Westport or W of Ballina (Erris). Have not seen any in Mayo myself.

A young buzzard was seen perched in a plantation on the Erris peninsula only last September.


PS: The seem to be doing OK in nearby Sligo so hopefully its only a matter of time before they become more widespead in Mayo:)

snowstreams

Im usually walking out along the coast/mountains when im in Mayo so thats probably against my chances of seeing one. I'll keep my eyes on the skies, im bound to see one sooner or later in Mayo if they are breeding in Sligo.
They will surely make it to Mayo in the next 10 years considering, 20 years ago they were mostly confined to Antrim.

Tedzer

eire_dd wrote: »

It was actually Kileen Golf club, over at the naas road

Also saw one about 2 wk ago around same area was at my childs GAA game looking up to sky fantastic sight.
other parents must think i was a bit mad looking up to sky so long.
Also driving south on N7 another day & same bird flew close to roof of car close call. what a majestic and fantastic bird.

heavyballs

saw 2 sets of 2 in different parts of Greystones/Kilcoole and saw 1 last week just above the new toll outside Kilcock

also i saw a different bird of prey also in Kilcock but it was a fair bit smaller ,very quick and was diving into field next door ,don't know what it was

Feargal as Luimneach

heavyballs wrote: »

saw 2 sets of 2 in different parts of Greystones/Kilcoole and saw 1 last week just above the new toll outside Kilcock

also i saw a different bird of prey also in Kilcock but it was a fair bit smaller ,very quick and was diving into field next door ,don't know what it was

Probably a Kestrel.......

heavyballs

Feargal as Luimneach wrote: »

Probably a Kestrel.......

cheers ,have been checking out a few picks,the wing looks different though,could it be a peregrine falcon,wings looked similar?not sure about size though

Smartypantsdig

I have been out working near Duleek all week and I can say, hand on the place where the Romans used to swear by, it is buzzard country! At one stage I had seven in the air right over me. There appears to be a great variation in the colouring of these birds. Some are almost pale brown while others are so dark as to be almost black. Is this normal?

trebor28

Smartypantsdig wrote: »

I have been out working near Duleek all week and I can say, hand on the place where the Romans used to swear by, it is buzzard country! At one stage I had seven in the air right over me. There appears to be a great variation in the colouring of these birds. Some are almost pale brown while others are so dark as to be almost black. Is this normal?

i think juveniles are paler brown so thats probably what you are seeing.
plus if their was 7 of them that would add up all though if there were 5 chicks they must be doing very well.

Birdnuts

Smartypantsdig wrote: »

I have been out working near Duleek all week and I can say, hand on the place where the Romans used to swear by, it is buzzard country! At one stage I had seven in the air right over me. There appears to be a great variation in the colouring of these birds. Some are almost pale brown while others are so dark as to be almost black. Is this normal?

The Common Buzzard is indeed the most variable plumaged Bird of Prey in Europe at least. Every shade from extremely pale to near black can occur in adults. Rufus is also possible but this is more common in Eastern Europe where they are sometimes called Steppe Buzzards.

E39MSport

I think theres a dead one on the right hand verge of the M4 Motorway as it begins heading west out of Lucan.
Pity.

whyulittle

Was driving into the M4 toll plaza this morning, and spotted a large dark grey bird with a big wedged tail.

Was it a buzzard, or kestrel...?

Connacht

almost certainly a Buzzard.
I came thru the M4 toll yesterday at 5 pm and saw one over fields to right a few km west of toll.

marlin vs

I got this picture of a pair of Buzzard's while pigeon shooting, as the circled overhead.

Bsal

I saw 3 together over Silogue golf course near Dublin airport this afternoon.

trebor28

would rabbits be a favoured prey of buzzards?

there is a field near me where i know for a fact there is rabbits, its the only one in the locality that i know of.
anyway the last couple of times i have been walking my dogs up there i have spotted a buzzard flying away from the trees along the ditch when he sees me coming. he then lands on a telephone pole for a while watching me and then flies off.
when i get to the field there is not a rabbit to be seen anywhere.

Fuzzy Clam

Saw 4 together this afternoon circling over a field near me in the Midlands.

Birdnuts

trebor28 wrote: »

would rabbits be a favoured prey of buzzards?

.

Going on the ones around here, its rabbits in the late spring/early summer changing over to rats from harvest time onwards:)

Mothman

This thread moved into a discussion on Frogs and Buzzards preying on them. I have moved these posts to a new thread

Continue with this thread for Buzzard observations and general queries about Buzzards

Bsal

Around 14:30 this afternoon there was six Buzzards and one Kestrel over my house near Swords, the Buzzards seemed to be chasing the Kestrel off while they where soaring high. There was also alot of Swallows flying around the Buzzards too, it was a great sight.

rog1985

Buzzards vary widly in their shade and colouring. They are really on the increase. Its great.

heavyballs

saw between 4-6 on Saturdat around lunchtime,in the forest just above Stepaside driving range
i wish i had my binoc's with me last week at the Ryder Cup in Wales,i spotted a couple of Eagles and a lot of Buzzards,also some other BOP i couldn't i.d,my mates were stuck into the golf,they couldn't understand why i was looking at "poxy birds" instead of the golf,GOONS!

whyulittle

BOP of some kind over a business park in Athlone today, where I've also seen plenty of rabbits. Camera coming with me tomorrow!

trebor28

just saw 3 maybe 4 today soaring up very high.

one was farther away than the other two. and had another bird with it, slightly smaller could have been a rook.

coolhandspan

trebor28 wrote: »

just saw 3 maybe 4 today soaring up very high.

one was farther away than the other two. and had another bird with it, slightly smaller could have been a rook.

new n2 motorway is a great place to observe these birds. nearly 100 percent rate every time i drive it. ward/ swords area very plentiful. usually perched on top of motorway lights

homerhop

There are 3 buzzards across the road from me in some trees and a further 6 in some woodland close by. One perches on a post at the top of the garden. I sit out in the evening listening to them call to one and other. Now the other day one was perched on a gate post up from the house and I pulled the car in to look at it, as it flew away it appeared to have a wing tag. I might be mistaken as it may have been a trick of the eye but it was only about 20 ft away. Does anyone know if there is a tagging scheme for them at the moment?

Birdnuts

homerhop wrote: »

There are 3 buzzards across the road from me in some trees and a further 6 in some woodland close by. One perches on a post at the top of the garden. I sit out in the evening listening to them call to one and other. Now the other day one was perched on a gate post up from the house and I pulled the car in to look at it, as it flew away it appeared to have a wing tag. I might be mistaken as it may have been a trick of the eye but it was only about 20 ft away. Does anyone know if there is a tagging scheme for them at the moment?

Not as far as I am aware - Are you sure it wasn't a juvenile Red Kite??, they can look like a buzzard from certain angles, I've made this mistake in the past myself:)

Mabel

Saw a massive one on the M50 yesterday. I know some people are given to exaggerating sizes but I honestly thought this was a young Golden Eagle (am 99.9% sure it was a Buzzard ). It was just sitting in a tree sheltering from the rain. Even in the car could clearly see it looking balefully around.

sables2

Mabel wrote: »

Saw a massive one on the M50 yesterday. I know some people are given to exaggerating sizes but I honestly thought this was a young Golden Eagle (am 99.9% sure it was a Buzzard ). It was just sitting in a tree sheltering from the rain. Even in the car could clearly see it looking balefully around.

Hi Mabel,
I saw a pair a few days ago at: Kilruddery House, Bray, Co Wicklow. There's a nature reserve here. Stunning birds of prey. Very large. Different in many ways to the elusive red kite -for one, their slightly smaller as in size. Ok, heavier set and darker markings, almost blackish in colour looking up to them. The red kite has lighter markings and has longer wings.
I'd love to see a kite, as i haven't as yet. If anyone has any idea's as to where would be best? I've tried Rathnew, Co. Wicklow, Avoca Village, Co. Wicklow.but to no avail unfortunately.