Update for Saturday, April 20, 2024
Since Astrid and Ares spent the day sharing incubation duties without much else to report, we figured it’s a fitting time to address a perennial question about our Utica pair: How can we distinguish Astrid from Ares based on their plumage?
Astrid sports a broader malar or mustache mark compared to Ares. Her blue-gray malar blends softly into her white cheek patch, creating a somewhat blurred transition. In contrast, Ares’ malar is notably thinner than Astrid’s (and thinner than most Peregrine Falcons), with a sharper boundary between the malar mark and his white cheek patch.
While Astrid has vertical dash-like streaking on her breast (light but noticeable), Ares’ breast appears predominantly whiter, adorned with fewer and less distinct chest streaks. On Ares’ belly, the dark spots are small and round, resembling dots made with a fine-tipped marker, while Astrid’s belly spots are larger and resemble chevrons drawn by someone using a broader-tipped marker with a shaky hand.
Finally, Ares shows some faint light areas in the plumage atop his head, whereas Astrid’s head plumage is uniformly blue-gray.