Merlin

As I was watching an assortment of Junco's feed, a Merlin swooped in flying low to the ground with arched wings. He was grey with four white stripes on his very long square tail. - November 12, 2009 near dusk.


It was quite exciting to see a Merlin considering the number of Junco's that were around just before dark.  One Junco had just chirped out in alarm that was somewhat ignored.  A resident squirrel, who also frequents that particular feeding area, had just wandered in looking for food and may have been used as part of a distraction so that the Merlin could feed on a tasty Junco.  I am not aware if Merlin's hunt using distractions? The Merlin was quite low to the ground at less than two feet - so the likelihood is great that he snatched a Junco. Not much else around that he would enjoy - I imagine that it appeared a feast with the number of Junco's available at over 15 Junco's with in 3ft-10ft of his "swoop" and another 10 Junco's 20ft-30ft  away opposite.




I don't believe that it was a Sharp-shinned Hawk due to the overall grey coloring of the back of the bird, the smoothness of its wing feather tips/shape,  the four white stripes across its tail feathers and its tail feather shape, its overall size was quite small - considering most predators. I was within 30 feet and quite shocked that something other than a crow would swoop around me and a few 4ft trees/bushes so agilely and with much speed!




This Merlin was very light grey, unlike most of the examples in two different book titles.  I have issue with both titles in their descriptions of the light grey form of Merlin (F. c. suckleyi) - as described by : 1) Birds of Washington State by Bell and Kennedy and 2) Western Birds by Roger Peterson. 


Unfortunately, I did not view the underside of this bird or its tucked head.


Peterson describes the prairie form as "paler, lacking mustaches." and the Coastal NW form as "dusky, lacking light eyebrow stripe." However, the identification photos list a brown "columbarius", a dark grey/black "richordsonii" and two forms of "suckleyi" one grey the other very light grey.




Bell and Kennedy in the title, Birds of Washington State, has a coloring description that confuses me further by indicating that the [quote] "Black Merlin" (F. C. suckleyi) is most often seen along the coast and inland in western regions.  The less dark "Taiga Merlin" (F. C. columbarius) is seen mostly east of the Cascades. The paler "Prairie Merlin" (F. C. richardsonii) may occur rarely in eastern Washington." [endquote].




Birds of Washington State indiciates "columbarius" as the "Tiaga Merlin" which is less dark than that of the "suckleyi" or "Black Merlin".  Peterson's title, Western Birds, offers a clearer example of "suckleyi" as being the lightest grey of all Merlin's.




The two descriptions of "richardsonii" and "suckleyii" rival one another.


 I had ruled out an accipitor due to this birds tightly formed, smoothly lying wing tip feathers that formed a sharp angle.  The bird was witnessed  while swooping and tightly turning with its wings held in a very specific arch whereby its wing tip feathers formed a tight downward angle leaving no spaces between its wing tip or wing edge feathers. Am I wrong to say that it wasn't an accipitor due to its wing feather tips forming a tight mass, but not held to its breast?  I believed accipitors to have spaces between their wing tip feathers and have a more rounded appearance.


The Junco's were not at a bird feeder, but in a patch of lightly treed ground (ie "feeding area")  There is a field a short distance from
this feeding area, where I have also found predated dead birds, and have seen falcons flying overhead (wing tips in flight differ from an
accipitor) .  This is in close proximity to a densely wooded area with many felled and cavity filled deadwood trees.  All with a modest range of the Nisqually River and Walden Creek.


Merlin Photo - how beautiful!  The bird I witnessed was a much lighter shade of grey and had a very very long square tail with four bars of white, where the end of its tail feathers was also barred white.  This photo depicts a short tail in comparison, but its feather composition seems to match (very fine - compact feathers).


http://www.tubbsphoto.com/-/tubbsphoto/detail.asp?photoID=6949450&cat=38975


Sharp Shinned Hawk - the tail does match the length of my bird, but its feather composition appears too large and not as finely composed as my bird.


http://www.tubbsphoto.com/-/tubbsphoto/detail.asp?photoID=5731172&cat=38975


Contrary to BirdWeb, the Merlin is not Uncommon West of the Cascades per Tweeters Alerts Admin. Nov. 14, 2009
http://www.birdweb.org/birdweb/bird_details.aspx?value=search&id=112