feather ID help needed

[shaggystu]

could someone help me to ID this feather please;

it was found at http://www.rutlandwater.org.uk/ this afternoon

cheers

stuart

 

[Colin.W]

how big is it

 

[blacktimberwolf]

Looks like buzzard to me....but if there are ospreys in the area........

 

[shaggystu]

how big is it

sorry, i couldn't find a scale to put in the photo. it's 6.5" long

 

[blacktimberwolf]

Because of the charateristic wavey pattern (as opposed to the stright-ish lines of other raptors) I'm thinking owl now, tawny or short eared.wing feather...

 

[shaggystu]

Looks like buzzard to me....but if there are ospreys in the area........

my first thought was buzzard, but i'm really just guessing. i believe that there are ospreys in the area, as well as red kites

 

[blacktimberwolf]

Just had a look at some female kestrel feathers & they look very similar.....

 

[shaggystu]

Just had a look at some female kestrel feathers & they look very similar.....

not a little bit big for a kestrel?

 

[Barn Owl]

Kestrel like for me too.

 

[21st century pict]

Just had a quick look through the Brown, Ferguson, Lawrence and Lees book Tracks & signs of Birds. And Kestrel would seem the best bet. I also had a look through my Buzzard feather collection but no signs of orange on any of the primary or secondary feathers. If the feather is very soft to touch it may very well be an owl.

 

[shaggystu]

we've spent quite a bit of time trawling through photo's of various feathers online and kestrel would appear to be the best bet at the moment.

thanks for all the replies

stuart

 

[Andy T]

Buzzard would be my guess as well, seems a bit on the large size for a Kestrel.