Bird ID please

[Spaniel man]

Out on my rounds of the farm yesterday, I found a pretty well chewed up bird carcass below a large beech tree. There was not much left but a wing and a pile feathers. I can't find anything similar in any guidebooks. These are some of them:

I'm guessing owl, by the shape, but not completely sure. Any ideas.....?

 

[nuggets]

Tawny owl ?? No head or feet lying around ??

 

[Spaniel man]

Unfortunately not, I think something has had a good munch.

 

[Bushwhacker]

How big do you reckon it was?

 

[Spaniel man]

The longer feather is about 16" long. That was the biggest I found.

 

[nuggets]

16 inch !!!! Bit long for a tawny ??? Long eared maybe ??

 

[pilotlight]

does the edge of the main feather have a comb like effect? That will identify it well for an owl. what is the underside of the main feather like in colour?

big question is what killed it? could be poisoning? shootking?

 

[Spaniel man]

does the edge of the main feather have a comb like effect? That will identify it well for an owl. what is the underside of the main feather like in colour?

big question is what killed it? could be poisoning? shootking?

It does have a comb like edge, so probably owl, but which one? The markings are different to any I have seen.
As to how it died - a mystery. I found it on the edge of our woods, in the middle of 44 acres of private land, and it's only me that shoots here.

 

[Barn Owl]

Turkey?
16 inch feather.

 

[Bushwhacker]

Turkey?
16 inch feather.

Good shout. The big one does look like a turkey tail feather.

 

[pilotlight]

see if this site helps, best I can find.

http://www.ibercajalav.net/img/271_LongearedOwlAotus.pdf

sadly I've never seen a long eared owl so my knowledge is limited. good luck

I'm off to work.

 

[21st century pict]

Hi Spaniel Man.
I was just wondering what bird book you were using? This one is very good but I haven’t got it on me ATM and I have only been studying the tracks really so far but I will have a look later on today.
Just had a quick look on line and Bushwhacker ‘s Turkey seems to fit the bill OK.


Brown, Ferguson, Lawrence, Lees.
Tracks and Signs of Birds: 2nd Ed. 2009.
Christopher Helm. ISBN 978-0-7136-5382-3

 

[Bowlander]

Its a tail feather from a bronze turkey. Either someone has dumped the carcass or a fox has nabbed it.

 

[Spaniel man]

Ah, I hadn't considered turkey, all of ours were eaten a few weeks ago, and they were Norfolk Blacks. There has been a lot of fox activity recently, as our neighbour shot the dominant dog a few weeks ago, and there has been a few others spotted in the area. Maybe one of them the culprit?
Thanks for all the info....

 

[craeg]

44 acres with wood. Nice