Large bird of prey near Newton Bridge Perthshire

[katem]

Travelling Monday 27th September via Newton Bridge Perthshire Scotland. Saw very large dark bird of prey above picnic area. Larger than a buzzard, and no obvious markings. Seven fingers on wings and fan shaped tail. Could it be a Black kite. Anybody have any ideas?

[Jim Ford]

You've got red kites up there, so it was probably one (unless the gamekeepers have shot or poisoned them all by now!) . They look very dark against the sky.

Jim

[Picidae]

Originally Posted by katem

Travelling Monday 27th September via Newton Bridge Perthshire Scotland. Saw very large dark bird of prey above picnic area. Larger than a buzzard, and no obvious markings. Seven fingers on wings and fan shaped tail. Could it be a Black kite. Anybody have any ideas?

Sounds like a White Tailed Eagle (possibly one of the Perth re-introductions) - nothing else (wild at least) has a seven fingered hand. Red Kite only has a five-fingered hand and even from a distance, while dark, still shows some underwing contrast whilst both WTE and Golden Eagle appear very dark against the sky.