Whether soaring effortlessly or sitting patiently on a telegraph pole, buzzards are the largest raptor that many of us ever see - the "Tourist's Eagle" is often mistaken for the real thing in Scotland. Legal protection has assisted their recovery from persecution to become the commonest and most widespread bird of prey in Britain. Buzzards vary in colour from all dark brown to much paler variants. All have dark wing tips and a finely barred tail. Look for birds soaring over wooded hillsides in fine weather, circling in the updraught from the hill or in a rising thermal of hot air. They have broad, rounded wings and a short neck and tail. When gliding, the wings are held in a shallow V and the tail is fanned. Their plaintive "mewing" call could be mistaken for a cat.
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