I will second Scott's suggestion of a falconer's bird. Large raptors like Red-tailed Hawks (RTHA), which are officially banded by someone with a license from the USGS Bird Banding Lab, will always receive a "lock-on" band. It is an aluminum band with two uneven flanges that are crimped with pliers, one overlapping the other, so the RTHA can't use its powerful bill and/or other foot to pry it off. Even larger raptors, like eagles, receive a band secured with a pop rivet. A wild bird that was banded by a researcher would never show a second, well-marked band with an alphanumeric code, without having the USGS band on the other leg as well.
Some bird species, like cranes and shorebirds, sometimes will be fitted with "flag" tags above the joint because it is naked. Bands on raptors like a RTHA, are always restricted to the tarsi. So, if you are seeing the alphanumeric band easily on one leg, there wouldn't be a USGS band that you can't see at all somewhere else.
Another indication that the bird hasn't been wild its whole life is the beak. The hook on the tip of the maxilla appears exaggerated to my eye. This part of the bill is made of keratin. Like our fingernails, it continues to grow throughout its life, but normal wear and tear keep it worn down. Birds spending time in captivity often have to have their bills trimmed because they don't get the normal erosive activity.
Good birding,
Eric
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Eric Hynes
Telluride, CO
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Box Canyon Birding
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Field Guides Birding Tours
On Fri, Mar 12, 2021 at 7:28 AM Scott <pygmyowl@frii.com> wrote:
--It may be a falconers bird that has escaped
Scott Rashid
On 3/11/2021 11:25 AM, Stephen Price wrote:
There has been a red-tail hawk hanging around my neighborhood in Longmont this winter. I noticed that it had a plastic band on one leg, and reported it to the Bird Banding Laboratory. The BBL couldn't give me any info about when or where the bird was banded because I don't have enough information for them. The bird is either lacking a metal band, or the metal band is placed way up high on the leg.
The plastic band is dark brown or black with yellow numbers. It has a yellow stripe near the top. Above the stripe it says "CO" in very small letters. The numbers I have seen are
(5 or 6) (blank) 585 (blank) 5
It might have "585" on both sides of the band, or else maybe I have only seen the band from one side.
I have taken numerous pictures of the band. Here are links to eBird https://macaulaylibrary.org/asset/315676601
Does anyone know who uses this type of band on hawks?
Stephen PriceLongmont, CO--
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