European Honey Buzzard

The European Honey Buzzard is a medium-sized bird of prey, similar in size to the Common Buzzard, our reference raptor, but lighter and sleeker. We distinguish it from the latter by its silhouette and voice rather than its plumage. Indeed, this plumage is as variable as that of the buzzard, but with characteristics specific to the head, wings and tail.
Let's first look at the silhouette in flight.
The head of the European Honey Buzzard is relatively thin and well projected forward of the line of the wings by a fairly long neck. The Buzzard has a wide head that looks almost crammed in.
Other criterion, the flight position of the wings. When gliding, the European Honey Buzzard holds the wings in the plane of its back and slightly downwards at their tips. On the other hand, the Buzzard raises its wings above the plane of its back, somewhat like a buzzard but more subtly.
Finally the tail. The European Honey Buzzard has a rather long tail, at least as long as the width of the wing, or even longer, giving it a particular silhouette. The Buzzard has a tail much shorter than the width of its wing, giving the impression that it is also wider than that of the European Honey Buzzard.
The plumage of the European Honey Buzzard is as variable in colouration as that of the Buzzard, from very pale to very dark in terms of the lower parts, those seen in flight. As a result, we must not focus on the colours but on the designs, especially those of the wings and tail. Both Buzzard and Honey Buzzard have finely barred flight feathers and tail feathers, but these bars are clearly visible on the Buzzard and barely visible on the European Honey Buzzard. Adults have dark tips to the flight feathers and tail feathers forming large wing and tail bars. But what the Honey Buzzard has in addition to what distinguishes it from the Buzzard are the well-defined additional bars at the base of the primaries and especially on the rectrices, usually two, forming a typical well-defined pattern (see photos).Finally, the European Honey Buzzard often has dark wrist patches in strong contrast. Sexual dimorphism is slight but real. The adult male is slightly smaller and lighter-headed.
The juvenile European Honey Buzzard can be distinguished from the adult by the ends of its remiges and rectrices which are much less dark, without a marked bar, but especially by its secondaries that are shaded forming two contrasting dark patches at the base of the wings.
In flapping flight, the European Honey Buzzard has wider, slower, and more supple beats than those of the buzzard.
When you have the chance to have a European Honey Buzzard perched at a reasonable distance, you will notice the thinness of the head, held high, the fine beak with slit nostrils, and finally the robust legs with short tarses, all of which are very typical but require some familiarity and attention. The adult has bright yellow iris and the wax of its beak is grey-blue. The male can be distinguished from the female by his light grey head. The female has a brown head. The juvenile is more delicate to determine as its brown eyes and yellow wax of its beak make it look like a buzzard. It is then necessary to pay attention to the silhouette of the head and the shape of the external nostrils.