Bird Guide

Dark Chanting Goshawk vs Pale Chanting Goshawk

Dark Chanting Goshawk (Melierax metabates)

Dark Chanting Goshawk

Melierax metabates

Large675 gShrubland

The dark chanting goshawk is a medium-sized, bulky hawk with an upright stance. The head, breast and upperparts are essentially dark grey, while the underparts, other than the breast, are white, finely barred with black. The wing primaries are black, and the tail has broad black and white bars. The cere and the long legs are orange-red. The female is, on average, larger than the male, weighing up to 840g to the male's maximum weight of 700g. Voice: As its common name suggests, the dark chanting goshawk is a vocal bird, although less so than its two congeners. It often calls from a perch or in flight, making an accelerating series of piping notes and fluty whistles, which has been described as a song or chant and there are up to a dozen notes in a series peeu-peeu-pu-pu-pu. It also gives a high-pitched peee-u.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Originally posted to Flickr as [1] *uploaded to commons as Melierax_metabates_-Kapama_Game_Reserve,_South_Africa-8.jpg: I Love Trees derivative work: Snowmanradio (talk) · CC BY 2.0
Pale Chanting Goshawk (Melierax canorus)

Pale Chanting Goshawk

Melierax canorus

Large663 gShrubland

This species is approximately 55 cm in length with a wingspan of 110 cm. The adult has grey upperparts with a white rump. The central tail feathers are black tipped with white and the outer tail feathers are barred grey and white. The head and upper breast are pale grey while the rest of the underparts are finely barred in dark grey and white. The eyes are dark brown in the adult and pale yellow in the immature. The bill is red at the base and dark grey at the tip. The cere, facial skin and long legs are also red.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Sonogram of the Pale Chanting Goshawk
Recorded by Joris Komen · Call · Windhoek, Khomas Region, Namibia · CC BY-SA 4.0
Photo: Hobbyfotowiki · CC0

Where you might meet both

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Dark Chanting Goshawk and Pale Chanting Goshawk.