Chinese Sparrowhawk

Accipiter soloensis

Beak

—

Feet

—

Crest

No crest

Winter visitor. Nicobars. Comparatively narrow and pointed wings. with long primary projection at re st (extending nearly halfway down taill. Adult has blue-grey head and upperparts. indistinct grey gular stripe, and rufous-orange breast; distinctive underwing pattern, with unbarred remiges and coverts, blackish wing-tips and dark grey trailing edge. Sexes similar, and there is little difference in size. although breast coloration of male is paler and can be whitish or pale greyish-purple. while ·. breast of female can show bars of darker grey and upperparts are a shade browner; iris is dark \ crimson in male and yellow in female. Sub-adults show some dark barring on underside of flight feathers. Juvenile has dark brown upperparts. pronounced dark gular stripe. and rufous-brown spotting and barring on underparts; compared with juvenile Japanese Sparrowhawk. crown is a darker slate-grey than mantle, lacks distinct supercilium. and has distinctive underwing pattern (dark grey wing-tips and trailing edge, largely unmarked greyish-brown to pale rufous covertsl. Forest and wooded country.