Table Of ContentSome comments on the identification
of six Madagascar raptors
PeteMorrisfandFrankHawking
L’article traite de deux problemes d’identification auxquels les ornithologues visitant Madagascar se
trouventconfrontes.Premierementl’identificationdelaBusedeMadagascarButeobrachypterusetdu
Gymnogene de Madagascar Polyboroides radiatus. Deuxiemement celle des troisAccipiterde Pile,
l’Autour de HenstAccipiterhenstii, l’Epervier de Madagascar A. madagascariensis et l’Epervier de
Frances A. francesiae ainsi que de celle du rare Aigle serpentaire malgache Eutriorcbis astur.
,
L’identificationdesAccipiterenparticulierconstitueunreeldefietcertainssujetsdoiventetreidentifies
avec beaucoup de precaution, etant donne le peu de caracteristiques de plumage concluantes.
L’information presentee dans cet article est basee sur des observations sur le terrain et l’examen de
peaux,etprovientduguidephotographiquedesoiseauxdeMadagascarquelesauteursontrecemment
publie. Les photos sontegalementtirees de cetouvrage.
Tieauthorshaverecentlypublishedanewphoto- secondary(includingpatchesfarfromprimaryforest,
graphic guide to the birds of Madagascar. The such as those on the high plateau) throughout the
information presented in this paper is taken from countryalthoughitisgenerallyscarceandseldomseen.
BirdsofMadagascar:aphotographicguide(Morris& It appears to be most common in southern forests,
Hawkins 1998) and is a result of several years of beingratherrareinevergreenhumidforest.Itisfound
collective field studies bythe authors, in additionto from sea-level to cl,600 m. MadagascarBuzzard oc-
severalweeksspentstudyingspecimensinmuseums curscommonlyinprimaryandsecondaryforest,areas
inBritain, France andMadagascar. ofwoodland and high rocky slopes throughout the
island except onthe largelydeforested high plateau
Introduction whereitisrare. Itisfoundfromsea-levelto2,300m.
There are few major bird identification problems in MadagascarCuckoo-Hawkisamedium-sizedraptor
Madagascar.Here,weprovideinformationontwoof (45-48 cm). The sexes and all known plumages are
themoretestingchallengesfacingbirders. Firstlythe alikealthoughthereisconsiderableindividualvaria-
identification of Madagascar Buzzard Buteo tion.Thefollowingdescriptionisofatypicalindividual:
brachypterusandMadagascarCuckoo-HawkAviceda headbrownwithashortcrestonthenapewhichisnot
madagascariensis is discussed. The second part of usuallyvisibleinthefield.Theupperpartsareuniform
the paper deals with the identification of the three darkbrownwithdarkerfeathercentres.Throatusually
speciesofaccipiterand,toalesserextent,thesimilar brownwithanindistinctdarkermesialstripe. Restof
Madagascar Serpent-Eagle Eutriorchis astur. The underpartstypicallybrightwhitewithvariablerufous
accipitersinparticularareanidentificationchallenge mottling on the breast and flanks, often forming an
andextremecareisneededtoidentifysomeindividu- irregularbroaddarkbandacrossthebreast.Tailbrown
alsastherearefewconclusiveplumagefeatures. withthreebroaddarkbandsvisiblefromtheunderside.
Inflight,showsrelativelyshortbroadwingswhichare
1. Identification of Madagascar Cuckoo- heldforwardwithnoticeablybulgingsecondaries.The
Hawk and Madagascar Buzzard upperpartsappearrelativelyuniformdarkbrownwith
MadagascarCuckoo-HawkandMadagascarBuzzard threebroaddarkbarsinthetail.Whenthetailisspread,
aretwoverysimilarspecieswhichappeartodisplay twowhitebandsformedbywhiteinnerwebstothetail
mimicryinplumage.Thecoverageoftheidentification feathersarevisible.Theunderwingsareconspicuously
ofthesespecieshasbeenratherweakintheliterature. barreddarkbrownacrossthecovertsandflightfeath-
Onplumagecriteriaalonetheyareexceedinglydifficult ers. The iris is conspicuously large andyellowish in
toidentify:mostvisitorstoMadagascararefacedwith colouralthoughdarkerinimmatures.Thebillisdark
averydifficultidentificationchallengeandlittlerefer- brownandthe(shortish)legsandfeetyellowishgrey.
ence material to help. Both species are distributed Madagascar Buzzard is a medium-large (48-51
widely.MadagascarCuckoo-Hawkisfoundinalltypes cm), broad-wingedandshort-tailedButeo. Sexesare
offorestincludingevergreen,drydeciduous,spinyand alike although there is extensive plumage variation
114-BullABC Vol5No2 CommentsonidentificationofsixMadagascarraptors:Morris&Hawkins
betweenindividuals.Thefollowingdescriptionisofa appearancequiteunlikeMadagascarBuzzardwhich
typicalindividual: headgrey-brown, upperpartsand hasthejizzofatypicalButeo.Inadditionthelongish
upperside ofwings uniform brown. Rump white or tailofMadagascarCuckoo-Hawkisoftenheldslightly
brown,tailgrey-brownwitharoundsixindistinctnar- open presenting a notched effect due to the large,
rowdarkerbands.Individualswithtypicalunderparts roundedoutertailfeathersoverlappingandthethree
have awhite throat streakedbrown, white breast ir- broaddarkbarsonthetailmaybeapparent,whilstthe
regularlymarkedwithbrowm.brownlowrerbreastand longwings(withanoticeablylargeprimaryextension)
belly with some white on the lower belly and vent. nearlyreachthetailtip.MadagascarBuzzardbycom-
Whensoaring,thewingsareheldabovethehorizontal parisonappearsshortertailed(usuallyappearingsquare)
intypicalButeofashion.Theunderwingsshowweak andshorterwinged,andthetailusuallyshows6-7fine
barringontheflightfeatherswithamarkedlydarker darkbars.Inflight,theentireunderwingsofMadagas-
tip, moreprominentbarringonthegreater-coverts,a carCuckoo-Hawk,andimportantlytheprimaries,are
darkmarkatthecarpaljointandsolidlybrownlesser- heavilybarred(blackishandwhite) lackingthecon-
covertswhichusuallyappearasadarkband,strikingin trasting darker tip to the primaries often shown by
flight.Theirisispaleyellow,dullerinimmatures,the MadagascarBuzzard.Thisisthesinglebestandmost
cerebluishgrey,thebillblackandtheratherlonglegs easilyseencharacterforseparatingthesespeciesonthe
and feet yellowish white. There is wide individual wing. Inadditionthelesser-andmedian-underwing-
variationinplumageinbothadultsandimmatures,and coverts lack the dark bar typically shown by
atypicalindividualsmaybesubstantiallypalerordarker. Madagascar Buzzard and the differences in tail pat-
Thetwospeciesdifferinhabitsprovidingoneof ternareoftenapparentonflyingbirds.Thepatterning
the best initial clues to identification. Madagascar on the underparts ofthe two species also differs in
Cuckoo-Hawkistypicallyratherunobtrusiveandoften many individuals. Madagascar Cuckoo-Hawk typi-
crepuscular.Itgenerallyhuntsfromaperchwithinthe callyshowsabandofrufousmottlingacrossthebreast
canopy. It feeds on small reptiles and insects in the and a white belly while the brownish throat often
foliage.Itmayrobnests.Itisusuallyseenattheforest showsamoreorlessdistinctdarkermesialstreak.By
edgeandaroundclearingsandmaybeseenhuntingin contrast, Madagascar Buzzard typically shows more
the canopywhen it often appears to ‘crash’ into the extensive darker markings on the belly. This differ-
foliageinpursuitofprey.Itissometimesseensoaring encemay, however, bedifficulttoassessinthefield.
althoughthespeciesismoreoftenseenflyingbetween Inaddition,whenseenperchedatcloserange,Mada-
forest blocks over open country with rather weak, gascarCuckoo-Hawkappearsshort-leggedwithlittle
waveringflight.Thecharacteristicdisplayconsistsof ornobaretarsusvisible.MadagascarBuzzardusually
threeorfourflickeringwing-beatsundertakenwhile appears longerleggedwithobviousbaretarsi.
thebirdturnswithwingsheldvertically.Itisagenerally
quietspecies:thevoiceisunknownalthoughaweak 2. Identification of Madagascar accipiters
two-notewhistleisthoughttobegivenbythisspecies and Madagascar Serpent-Eagle
(PMpers.obs.).Bycontrast,MadagascarBuzzardisa ThethreespeciesofAccipiteroccurringonMadagas-
common,conspicuousandnoisyspecies.Itisusually carhaveneverbeentreatedindetailintheliterature
seenaloneorinpairs,oftenperchingprominentlyand andconsequentlyarefrequentlyconfusedbyvisitors,
soaringoverforestwithwingsheldabovethehorizon- leavingtheimpressionthattheyarealleasytosee.In
tal. The species feeds mainly on small vertebrates reality,twoareconsiderablyrarerthantheotherone.
includingreptiles,amphibians,rodentsandsmalland ThethreespeciesareFrances’sSparrowhawkAccip-
medium-sized birds. The call is loud and frequently iter francesi Madagascar Sparrowhawk A.
given,especiallywhensoaring.Itisbestdescribedasa madagascariens,isandHenst’sGoshawkA.hensti.All
loudmewing meee-uuwtypicalofthegenus. are present in western and eastern primary forests.
The two species are superficiallyvery similar in Henst’s Goshawk is scarce orabsentfrom the south
appearanceandmustbeseparatedwithcareusinga whereMadagascarSparrowhawkmaybemorecom-
number of subtle, although once learnt distinctive, mon. Frances’s Sparrowhawk is often common in
features. MadagascarCuckoo-Hawk is smaller, slim- secondaryhabitats,sometimesfarfromforest,butthe
merandlonger-tailedthanMadagascarBuzzardwhich otherspeciesaremorerestrictedtoprimaryforestand
appearsstockywithlongbroadwingsandashorttail. itsenvirons. Frances’sSparrowhawkisthecommon-
Atrest,theroundedhead(withashortcrestwhichis est, by a factor of ten in many areas. Madagascar
notusuallyvisible)andtheunusuallylargebulgingeyes Sparrowhawkisuncommon,exceptinsomeareasof
oftheMadagascarCuckoo-Hawkgivethespeciesan thesouthalthoughevenheretheyarerelativelyscarce
CommentsonidentificationofsixMadagascarraptors:Morris&Hawkins BullABC Vol5No2- 115
116-BullABC Vol5No2 CommentsonidentificationofsixMadagascarraptors:Morris&Hawkins
1 AdultHenst’s GoshawkAccipiterhensti(Gavin&Val
Thomson)
2 AdultHenst’s GoshawkAccipiterhensti(Russell
Thorstrom)
3 AdultMadagascarCuckoo-hawkAviceda
madagascariensisinflight (FrankHawkins)
4 FemaleMadagascarBuzzardButeobrachypterusin
flight(SimonHarrap)
3 AdultMadagascarCukoo-hawkAviceda
madagascariensis(PeteMorris)
6 FemaleMadagascarBuzzardButeobrachypterus(Pete
Morris)
7 Female Frances’s SparrowhawkAccipiterfrancesi(Pete
Morris)
8 MaleFrances’s SparrowhawkAccipiterfrancesi(Jeff
Blincow)
9 AdultMadagascarSerpent-eagleEutriorchisastur
(RussellThorstrom)
10 FemaleMadagascarSparrowhawkAccipiter
madagascariensis (RussellThorstrom)
11 FemaleMadagascarSparrowhawkAccipiter
madagascariensis (RussellThorstrom)
Plates 1-11areallreproducedwithkindpermissionofPicaPress.
CommentsonidentificationofsixMadagascarraptors:Morris&Hawkins BullABC Vo!5No2- 117
and difficult to see. Large female Henst’s Goshawks (this mayalsobe apparentin older(?)females). The
areeasytoseparatepurelyonsize(butare—difficultto breast is whitish barred narrowly darker, the bars
separate fromMadagascarSerpent-Eagles an iden- being almostblackish. The throat iswhite withfine,
tification challenge later treated here). Adult male blackishstriationsacrossitswidth,eachstreakhaving
Frances’sSparrowhawkissmallwithlargelyunmarked verynarrowlateralextensions.Theundertail-coverts
white (sometimestingedpink) underpartswithonly aretypicallywhite.Thefeetareremarkablylongand
faint rufous-orange barring renderingthem immedi- spindly, especiallythe central toe which projects al-
ately recognisable. All other plumages, sexes and most a centimetre beyond the others. Overall,
agesaredifficulttodistinguish.Thispapertreatseach MadagascarSparrowhawkisarelativelyweaklybuilt
species and discusses the key identification charac- species,beingrathersmall-headed,long-wingedwith
ters. longslenderlegs andarelativelyfinebill.
Frances’s Sparrowhawk is a smallAccipiter(28— Henst’sGoshawkisalmostidenticalinplumageto
35 cm), smaller than European Sparrowhawk MadagascarSparrowhawkinallplumages.However,
Accipiternisus and about the size ofSharp-shinned theyareverylargeandpowerfulaccipiters,especially
HawkA.striatusoftheNewWorld. Youngbirds are largefemales.Themaleissubstantiallysmaller,how-
brownabove,withapalemarkinfrontoftheeyeand ever,andasmallmalemaybelittlelargerthanafemale
sometimesanarrowpalesuperciliumwhichmayjust MadagascarSparrowhawk.Themajordifferencesbe-
jointhepalespotsonthebackoftheneck/nape.The tween the plumages of Henst’s Goshawk and
underparts are whitish with ratherwide mid-brown Madagascar Sparrowhawk are that the throat ofthe
barring, individualbars oftenpresentingthe impres- formerlooksbarredormottledratherthanstreaked,
sion that they are darker at the margins than in the withthelateralextensionsonstreaksmentionedonthe
centre.Thereisafairlyconspicuousdarkmesialstripe. throatpatternofMadagascarSparrowhawkbeingmore
Theundertail-covertsshowtwoorthreenarrowpale stronglymarkedinthe streaks onHenst’s, forminga
brownbars,lessconspicuousthanthoseonthebreast. barredorchequeredpattern.Henst’sGoshawktends
Theuppersidesofthecentraltailfeathersareunbarred. to show slightly paler upperparts than Madagascar
Feathersoftheupperparts showinconspicuouspale Sparrowhawkanddoesnotshowtheslatetingetothe
fringeswhicharedifficulttodiscerninthefield. The upperparts present in some individuals ofthe latter
legsandfeetarelongbutnotmarkedlyso.Adultfemale species. In addition, the undertail-coverts ofHenst’s
Frances’sSparrowhawkissimilartotheimmaturebut Goshawks show slight andvariable barring. Henst’s
istingedevenlygreyontheheadandnape,forminga Goshawk has a very loud and characteristic call, an
slight grey hood, andusuallylacks the pale spots in angrybarkingangk-angk-angk-angk-angk-angk-angk,
frontoftheeyeandonthenape. Itistypicallyrather whichisoftengiveninflightandhasasimilarqualityto
darkerbrownonthebackthantheyoungbird(lacking a small dog. This is the most frequent means of
the indistinct pale fringes), and the barring on the detectingthespecies.
breastisdarkerandmayappearnarrower.Themesial When confronted by a medium-sized perched
stripeismoreobscurebutusuallypresent;thethroatis Accipiterwith barred underparts, the following key
otherwise uniform off-white with a few indistinct, points should be noted, in order ofimportance: (a)
brown streaks. The undertail-coverts show barring undertail-coverts pattern (barred, albeit slightly, in
similartoyoungbirds. Frances’s andHenst’s, unbarred inMadagascar); (b)
MadagascarSparrowhawk is a smallto medium- throatpattern(barredormottledinHenst’s,narrowly
sized (29-40cm)whichshowsgreatvariation streakedinMadagascarandwithasinglemoreorless
insizebetweensexes.Smallmalesarenotmuchbigger obvious dark central streak in Frances’s); (c) the
thanmaleFrances’sSparrowhawk,whilstlargefemales colour ofthe upperparts (often darkest in Madagas-
arealmostthesizeofmaleHenst’sGoshawk,butless car,theonlyspecieslikelytoshowadarkslatetoneto
powerfullybuilt.YoungMadagascarSparrowhawkis theupperparts);(d)thepatternofbarringandground
typicallydarkearth-brownabove,withapalespotin colouroftheunderparts(Frances’stendstoshowoff-
frontoftheeyeandpalewhitenape-spots.Theunder- white underparts with relatively broad brown bars,
parts are streaked (rather than barred), some ofthe especiallyinimmatures,Madagascarshowsthewhit-
brown streaks on the breast widening into narrow estunderpartswithcrisp,narrowdarkbarswhilstthe
ovals.AdultmaleandfemaleMadagascarSparrowhawks barring on Henst’s tends to be slightly browner and
areverysimilar in plumage and are treatedtogether closerthanMadagascar);(e)relativelengthofthetoes
here.Theyareratherdarkgrey-brownabove,themale (relatively short in Frances’s and Henst’s, unusually
slightlydarker,withaslightslatetingeinsomelights longandspindlyinMadagascar).Forastreak-breasted
118-BullABC Vol5No2 CommentsonidentificationofsixMadagascarraptors:Morris&Hawkins
(immature)Accipiter, criterion (e) isthe onlyone of Goshawk,andthesurprisinglylongtailoftheserpent-
anyuse,exceptthataMadagascarSparrowhawkwill eagle is noticeable. The ‘song’ of Madagascar
generallylookslimandsmallcomparedtothealmost Serpent-Eagle is highly characteristic and is very
eagle-likeproportionsofHenst’sGoshawk.Frances’s different to the Henst’s Goshawk calls described
Sparrowhawkshowsbarredunderpartsinallplumages above. Usually delivered from a favoured perch or
(oftenindistinctintheadultmale)andnevershowsthe ‘songtree’, itisaslowsequence ofthreetotenloud
streak-breastedimmatureplumagesoftheothertwo barking amknotes usuallyending in a single lower
species. note, tough. Eachnoteintheseriesisseparatedfrom
MadagascarSerpent-Eagle is similarto, although the next by 1-1.5 s.
slightlylargerthan,Henst’sGoshawk(thesizediffer-
enceisprobablynoteasytoappreciateinthefield)and Conclusion
thispairofspeciesposesanotherseriousidentification It is hoped that careful application ofthe characters
challenge.Theserpent-eagleisarareresidentineastern describedabovewillpermitthecorrectidentification
and north-eastern forests, with most recent records ofa majorityofindividuals ofthese difficultspecies.
comingfromtheMasoalapeninsula.MadagascarSer- However,itmustbestressedthat,tocorrectlyidentify
pent-EaglediffersfromadultHenst’sGoshawkinthe some individuals exceptionally good views will be
following ways: (a) it shows dark barring on the requiredandsomeindividualswillalwaysbestremain
upperwing, especially on the primaries and tertials, unidentified.Finally,theauthorswouldwelcomecom-
whereasHenst’saremoreuniform;(b)overall,Mada- ments from any readers which updates or corrects
gascarSerpent-Eagleisratherwarmerdarkbrownon materialpresentedhereandinBirdsofMadagascar,
the back, whereas Henst’s Goshawk is dark grey- aphotographicguide.
brown; (c) the head ofMadagascar Serpent-Eagle is
more massive than Henst’s Goshawk, with a short, Acknowledgements
rather shaggy crest recalling a Spilornis eagle. The Thephotographsaccompanyingthispaperaretaken
feathersofthe rearcrownandnape areoftentipped fromBirdsofMadagascar:aphotographicguide(Morris
white(moremarkedlyinjuveniles)withinternalblack &Hawkins 1998) andthe authorswould like to sin-
barring;(d)MadagascarSerpent-Eagle’sbilllacksthe cerely thank Russell Thorstrom, Simon Harrap, Rob
characteristic Accipiter notch; (e) Madagascar Ser- Morris,JeffBlincowandGavinandValThomsonfor
pent-Eagle is distinctly longer-tailed than Henst’s permitting them to reproduce theirexcellent photo-
Goshawk; (e) the underparts ofthe two species are graphs here. (f>
rathersimilar, butthebarringonthebreastofMada- ac/o Birdquest, Two Jays, Kemple End, Birdy Brow,
gascar Serpent-Eagle is duller and paler brown and Stonyhurst, LancashireBB79QY, UK.
somewhatmorewidelyspaced. Inaddition, inflight, hProjet ZICOMA, BirdLife International, BP 1074,
Madagascar Serpent-Eagle has a rather floppy flight Antananarivo101,Madagascar.
comparedtothe powerful directprogress ofHenst’s
CommentsonidentificationofsixMadagascarraptors:Morris&Hawkins BullABC Vol5No2- 119
