Roadside sighting.

[Dave Appleton]

Originally Posted by PeterB

The two are Woodcock and Jack Snipe, the latter being confirmed by the gaggle of people "better than I" at the scene.

Don't always believe gaggles of people! I saw two Jack Snipes recently that had been confirmed by a gaggle of people (they even gave the impression of being competent birders) - but they were most certainly not Jack Snipes - just ordinary Snipes!

Originally Posted by PeterB

The one feature I got was the leading edges of the wings, which were folded, formed clean vertical white stripes, which really stood out.

That bit doesn't sound like Hen Harrier, nor any other raptor. It is however a great description of a Woodpigeon

[RoyW__]

Originally Posted by PeterB

I thought Peregrine at the time but since looking at some pics I have decided it was not as the chest was dark grey as was the head.

The one feature I got was the leading edges of the wings, which were folded, formed clean vertical white stripes, which really stood out.

It looked as big as a Kite, or bigger (Although I recognise size is always difficult to judge).

Any other ideas?

Originally Posted by Dave Appleton

That bit doesn't sound like Hen Harrier, nor any other raptor. It is however a great description of a Woodpigeon

It doesn't sound much like a male Hen Harrier to me either (for one thing the grey of male Hen Harriers is pretty pale, and a white leading edge to the wing wouldn't stand out).

It's not that unusual to see a white leading edge to the wing on some large falcons (eg. take a look at some of the photos of Saker Falcons that come up on a google search). Large falcons kept by falconers are sometimes seen as escapes, and can vary greatly in appearance so might fit the description (look up Saker, Gyr - including the grey individuals, Lanner, and "hybrid falcons").

[Winterkoning]

Very interesting Roy.........thanks for posting

[Dave Appleton]

Originally Posted by RoyW__

It's not that unusual to see a white leading edge to the wing on some large falcons (eg. take a look at some of the photos of Saker Falcons that come up on a google search).

Oh yeah - I'd not noticed that before! Sadly with hybrids and even trigens (hybrids of hybrids involving three species) common in captivity a firm ID is often impossible even with first-class photos to assist.

[RoyW__]

...of course, Peter is the one who saw the bird, and if he thinks that it was a male Hen Harrier that might be what it was (written/spoken descriptions don't always sound like the species in question!).

[PeterB]

I still have the image of it in my head and googling Hen Harrier produces the images that best fit the image in my head. However, I am more than aware how easily it is to be fooled by size and colour perception.

All part of the fun. I hope it wasn't actually a squirrel...........

[Dave Appleton]

I reckon it's that Dunnock again - it's following you around!