In honor of orphan season (as we anxiously await the first arrival, any day/hour/second), I’ve decided to re-post an entry from a few years ago:
Below I have listed some of the common species in our area, as well as identifying characteristics.
Great horned owls (February-March)
Yellow eyes, dark beak, tan feathers
Barred owls (March-April)
Dark eyes, yellow beak, gray fuzz
Barn owls (any time of year)
Dark eyes, white beak, heart-shaped facial disk, very aggressive
Eastern screech owls (April-May)
Yellow eyes, greenish-grey beak, very small, “banding” pattern on feathers may be noticeable
Cooper’s hawks (May-June)
Bluish to lemon yellow eyes, very short beak compared to Buteos, greenish cere, long toe #3
Broad-winged hawks (July-August)
Brown eyes, yellow or greenish cere, smaller feet than red-shouldered hawks
Red-shouldered hawks (April-June)
Grey to tan eyes, longer beak than accipitors, yellow cere, very noisy, tend to lay down when stressed
Red-tailed hawk (May-June)
Grayish to tan eyes, greenish or bluish cere, large feet
American kestrels (June-July)
Dark eyes, falcon tooth, pink face, long toes, very tiny
Black vulture (March-August)
Long faces, buff-colored down
Turkey vulture (May-August)
Long faces, white down
Here is a THROWBACK post from a few years ago – we no longer call it “Orphan Season” because there are very few true orphans, we like to refer to it as “Nestling Season”.
BettSplendens Tumblr Evac 