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Re: Mystery bird of prey?

Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2019 9:26 am
by Jim_j
Some interesting speculation based on a single blurry picture - the loch Ness monster and various other myths come to mind....lighting and camera angles can produce some weird results.
Nothing is impossible of course .... but Richmond is hardly deepest darkest Fiordland so strange no further sightings?
Seems the right size for little shag....
Cheers Jim

Re: Mystery bird of prey?

Posted: Sat Jul 27, 2019 2:18 pm
by phil hammond
Jim, I don't think anyone is getting carried away here. Those of us that have mentioned the slim possibility that it is an unlikely raptor have been using words like "outrageous" "wild speculation" etc.

But some of us are not completely ignoring the comments of the guy that saw it, and are not therefore judging it just solely on what we can all agree is possibly a very misleading photo

Re: Mystery bird of prey?

Posted: Sun Jul 28, 2019 11:40 pm
by RandF
My 2c worth - when I saw the photo my immediate reaction was Augur Buzzard, but then rational thought took over. Given the comment above re raptors in transit on ships, it may be an escapee. It certainly has the GISS of a Buteo.

Re: Mystery bird of prey?

Posted: Tue Jul 30, 2019 7:54 pm
by TheBirderman
Looking at the photo now, and if this is even a live bird and a vagrant, and it being from the Northern Hemisphere, it would have to get wildly lost to end up let alone in NZ. My best guess is it's a prop bird, maybe by a farmer to scare off Sparrows and Starlings.

Cheers

Re: Mystery bird of prey?

Posted: Wed Jul 31, 2019 6:49 am
by RussCannings
Both observers saw it fly away so it is not a prop :)

Maybe it's a hybrid shag-hawk-ibis-petrel backcrossed with a chunk of wood? Or a new undiscovered species "Grainy Hawk"...

Re: Mystery bird of prey?

Posted: Wed Jul 31, 2019 9:15 am
by Jim_j
Is there some information missing in these threads - I can't see any mention of more than 1 observer?

Cheers
Jim

Re: Mystery bird of prey?

Posted: Wed Jul 31, 2019 11:35 am
by Davidthomas
I believe it was a husband and wife who saw it.

Steve I hear there were more photos. Did you ever get to see any of them? And was this cropped by you? Or they used digital zoom on their phone which blew it out so badly?

Re: Mystery bird of prey?

Posted: Wed Jul 31, 2019 3:19 pm
by Steve Wood
Dave,there is three images all of the same caliber.
The images were taken on his phone,through car window which was up at the time as not to flush the bird. The bird flew when he wound the window down for a better picture which never materialised.

Re: Mystery bird of prey?

Posted: Wed Jul 31, 2019 8:33 pm
by G Martyn
The original post said it was photographed in Hill St. Do we know where exactly in Hill St? I drove along Hill St yesterday but couldn't figure out likely spots. For my money it is a little pied shag.
Graeme Martyn

Re: Mystery bird of prey?

Posted: Thu Aug 01, 2019 7:18 am
by Steve Wood
585 Hill street