Dark Morph Red-tailed Hawk in Oakville near Toronto

This one and a half year-old dark morph Red-tailed Hawk is wintering in Oakville at Highway 403 and Dundas on the border of Peel Region and Halton Region on 22 January 2012.

Thanks to Jerry Liguori, Tom Carolan and Brian Wheeler for comments about age. Kevin McLaughlin and Derek Lyon helped obtain information.

It has an all red tail with a black subterminal band typical of an adult, yet its eye is very pale yellow, almost white, like on a juvenile. Its age is one and a half years. Red-tailed Hawks retain pale eyes into their second year.

Side view. 22 January 2012.

The intersection of 403 and Dundas is extremely busy with nowhere to park safely and the bird is very skittish. 22 January 2012

 Dark morph Red-tailed Hawks are rare in Ontario, yet there are four within 100 km of Toronto: Oakville, Oshawa, Guelph and Brantford.

Link to more photos of the same Oakville Red-tailed Hawk by Melissa Coniglio on 15 January 2012

 http://www.flickr.com/photos/wgrc1971/sets/72157628889992327/

Link to photos of a juvenile dark morph Red-tailed Hawk in Oshawa, east of Toronto by Bethany Linton on 29 December 2011

http://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.10150459572531245.357981.585991244&type=1&l=a082071d63

Dark morph Red-tailed Hawk near Guelph by Tom Thomas on 22 December 2011

http://www.ofo.ca/photoalbums/current/December/slides/WesternRed-tailedHawkdark%20intermediatett.html

Link to 3 page article by Jean Iron in Toronto Ornithological Club Newsletter Number 222

Dark morph Red-tailed Hawks: calurus or abieticola?