Native Buzzard in Ireland

StevieIRE

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Red-Coat

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Not a buzzard, Stevie, but a hawk. Nice picture !

I think Stevie is correct, that it's the 'common' buzzard' {Buteo buteo). We have them soaring over our garden from time to time.

Buzzards are members of the hawk family (Accipitridae) and most American species of "hawk" are actually buzzards, but you guys don't call them that.

Nice picture, Stevie.
 

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StevieIRE

StevieIRE

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I think Stevie is correct, that it's the 'common' buzzard' {Buteo buteo). We have them soaring over our garden from time to time.

Buzzards are members of the hawk family (Accipitridae) and most American species of "hawk" are actually buzzards, but you guys don't call them that.

Nice picture, Stevie.
Thanks
 

Red-Coat

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Looks like I've been educated :) In the states, a buzzard is a vulture. Live and learn !

It's confusing that America has adopted common names which don't respect the actual taxonomy.

Within the hawk family (Accipitridae), buzzards are assigned to the genus Buteo and true hawks assigned to the genus Accipiter.

For the North American continent, despite having the popular name of “hawk”, the Broad-winged Hawk, Ferruginous Hawk, Gray Hawk, Gray-lined Hawk, Red-shouldered Hawk, Red-tailed Hawk, Rough-legged Hawk, Short-tailed Hawk, White-tailed Hawk and Zone-tailed Hawk are all buzzards in the genus Buteo. The Roadside hawk was also in Buteo, but is now generally reassigned as the sole member of the Rupornis genus.

Only Cooper's Hawk, the Goshawk(s), Sharp-shinned Hawk and Swainson's Hawk are assigned to the genus Accipiter as true hawks.

Additionally, the North American continent also has the buzzard-related species of Common Black-Hawk (Buteogallus anthracinus) and Harris's Hawk (Parabuteo unicinctus).

Vultures in America are related, but assigned to multiple genera in the condor family (Cathartidae).
 

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Red-Coat

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PS: not trying to be a smart-ass here.. it's just that I'm a keen ornithologist.

Where I live we have flocks of parakeets and budgerigars plus a few other exotics. There are multiple anecdotal stories about where they came from, but they're generally accepted to be deliberate releases of unwanted birds and escapees which have managed to over-winter and form breeding populations.
 

tamrock

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Looks like I've been educated :) In the states, a buzzard is a vulture. Live and learn !
Not sure it wasn't just our failure to stay with the kings English. In my industry of mining the multiple words use for 3 different things can only be understood by knowing the persons origin sometimes.
 

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Ed_DE

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That's a great picture you got of your native buzzard . Theirs a lot of very knowledgeable people on Tnet that I learn a lot from over the years. I enjoy learning the differences and similarities we have from all over the world and what you would call buzzard we call hawks. Thanks!
Ed
 

jcc

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The Red-tailed Hawk (buzzard) is common throughout the US. I live in Michigan but have seen them in many US states. There is a mated pair that lives in the woods on the property of the church I attend. I have seen the male on my porch rail in a residential neighborhood a mile south of its nesting ground. It stopped to rest with a juvenile squirrel it had caught one day. Any "hawk" silhouette seen in Michigan is usually called a Red-tailed Hawk, whether or not the distinguishing features were seen.
 

Louie D

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The Red-tailed Hawk (buzzard) is common throughout the US. I live in Michigan but have seen them in many US states. There is a mated pair that lives in the woods on the property of the church I attend. I have seen the male on my porch rail in a residential neighborhood a mile south of its nesting ground. It stopped to rest with a juvenile squirrel it had caught one day. Any "hawk" silhouette seen in Michigan is usually called a Red-tailed Hawk, whether or not the distinguishing features were seen.
Here in my suburban metro Detroit neighborhood we have sharp shinned hawks patrolling the air ways.
 

Jim in Idaho

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Looks like I've been educated :) In the states, a buzzard is a vulture. Live and learn !
Only by people that don't know the difference. A buzzard is no vulture.
Jim
 

Red-Coat

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Only by people that don't know the difference. A buzzard is no vulture.
Jim

But that's what I said....

"Vultures in America are related [to buzzards in the hawk family, although not closely so] but assigned to multiple genera in the condor family (Cathartidae)."
 

uniface

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"Only by people who don't know the difference. A buzzard is no vulture."

Fine, Jim.

(Not that this is probably worth wrangling over): in your [officially correct] linguistic sphere, a redbird is a "cardinal." In my vernacular one, (assuming you have them out there), your "goldfinch" is a wild canary, and if somebody says, "The buzzards were circling the carcass," no one would respond with, "Don't you mean 'vultures' ?"

In the sense that Brits and Yanks are two peoples divided by a common tongue, there are stubborn holdouts against the compulsive standardization of American speech who figure that, intending no offence, if yunz don't like the way we talk, tough sh*t. We were here first.

All part of "embracing diversity" -- right ? :)
 

Red-Coat

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This is less about linguistic differences between countries and more about taxonomy (which should be universal to the scientific community). Whatever common names you want to use in America (or anywhere else), the taxonomy derived from evolutionary ancestry determines how they should properly be classed from a science viewpoint:

Taxonomy.jpg

Note the use of the term “New World Vultures” above. These evolved independently and from different ancestors than “Old World Vultures”. The similarity in appearance between the two groups is the result of “convergent evolution” but they aren’t closely related. Old World Vultures were once also present in North America (until around 11,000 years ago), but now only present in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia. Unlike New World Vultures, they’re assigned to the Accipitridae family along with True Hawks and Buzzards, but in the separate subfamilies of Aegypiinae and Gypaetinae. I omitted these from the tree above in the interests of clarity about what exists in America today.
 

uniface

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I believe you've made your point already, RC, and made it well. As long as the point of reference is ornithology, your contention is admittedly unassailable.

But the assumption embedded in it, that because your usage is correct in your context it should, on that basis, be imposed on everyone -- that the adoption of your implied frame of reference should be mandatory -- remains in dispute.

Thus our bison, stubbornly, remain buffalo, and our rock doves, pigeons.

Your Benighted Wellwisher,
Uni
 

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StevieIRE

StevieIRE

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That's a great picture you got of your native buzzard . Theirs a lot of very knowledgeable people on Tnet that I learn a lot from over the years. I enjoy learning the differences and similarities we have from all over the world and what you would call buzzard we call hawks. Thanks!
Ed
thank you
 

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