Can someone please help me find out what this raptor is?

[Faverolle]

Quote:
They are nature's scavengers however although not a common practice they do kill and eat small animals.

 

[goobhen]

The next time they are above our house, I will have my DH take their pictures, he takes better pictures anyway. When he saw the birds, he just laughed & said "There goes some of your chickens!" I told him "More hardward cloth & more secure run" Get busy!!

theresa

 

[amazondoc]

Quote:
They were probably vultures, but we need pics! Vultures do sometimes check out live things...probably just checking to see if we're dead yet.

We have a mated pair of owls, they aren't horned owls, no horns, but they have a barred pattern.

Oddly enough, the owls with a barred pattern are called barred owls.

 

[goobhen]

"Oddly enough, the owls with a barred pattern are called barred owls"

No, you don't understand, I live in Indiana, I went to work (after looling on the internet) told a friend that I had "spotted owls". He is a bird-watcher & told me they are only in the west. Another time, Pilated Woodpecker, of course they were the rare Ivory-billed woodpecker that has not been seen in 60 years. My husband has forbidden me to google any more!! I am just too funny!! theresa

 

[dacjohns]

Assuming that all the photographs are of the same bird I would say Turkey Vulture. The behavior described does not sound like vulture behavior. Maybe the bird that was photographed is not the same as the bird(s) observed on and near the ground.

 

[redhen]

Quote:
yes! please get pics! thanks! because i also do see them checking out live animals!..and if my hubby saw correctly...the bird that attacked a silkie in our yard had the grey under the wings like the turkey vulters...so....unless i have 2 differant things here? which i think i do..because we did something huge and brown perching on a post in the field that abuts our property...and it def. wasnt a turkey vulture...i saw its head clearly...it was a hawk/eagle head.. so i must have 2 kinds here...

 

[CTChickenMom]

Here is a pic of a red tailed hawk from underneath:

Here is an adult red-tailed hawk:

They are large birds. Here is some more information from Wikipedia:
The Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis) is a medium-sized bird of prey, one of three species colloquially known in the United States as the "chickenhawk," though it rarely preys on chickens. It breeds throughout most of North America, from western Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West Indies, and is one of the most common buteos in North America. There are fourteen recognized subspecies, which vary in appearance and range. It is one of the largest members of the genus Buteo in North America, typically weighing from 690 to 1600 grams (1.5 to 3.5 pounds) and measuring 45–65 cm (18 to 26 in) in length, with a wingspan from 110 to 145 cm (43 to 57 in). The Red-tailed Hawk displays sexual dimorphism in size, with females averaging about 25% heavier than males.

I bet this is your trouble maker:

http://animals.nationalgeographic.com/animals/birds/red-tailed-hawk.html

 

[redhen]

another question...when the one came back alone..crows chased him off....but....when there were the 3 of them the crows didnt chase them at all....will crows chase off vultures?

 

[elliemay0305]

i could be crazy but the first thing that came to my mind was a buzzard. or some people call them voltures. we have a lot of those around my house. they dont flap their wings when they fly they just glide.

 

[redhen]

the more i look..i think pics 1 2 3 are differant birds then the other pics.(what do you think?).because see how straight they keep their wings??.....we did snap some of the bird that came back by himself....the one the crows chased off..i just cant remember which ones i downloaded...

so..i may have 2 differant bird photographs here...