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The '''common''', or '''Eurasian buzzard''' (''Buteo buteo'') is a species of [[bird of prey]] of the family Accipitridae, and found over much of Europe and central Asia.
The '''common''', or '''Eurasian buzzard''' (''Buteo buteo'') is a species of [[bird of prey]] of the family Accipitridae, and found over much of Europe and central Asia.
==Description==
The common buzzard is medium-sized; from 16 to 23 inches in length, a wingspan of 43 to 55 inches, and weigh 0.9 to 3 pounds. Females are 2 to 7% larger than males.
The wings are relatively broad, and the short tail is rounded at the end. When gliding, the wings are kept in a shallow "V". The tips of the primary and secondary flight feathers are always dark, while the tail is usually tightly banded.
The nominate form (''B. b. buteo'') occurs in very different colorations from almost completely white to almost completely dark brown, which is unique in the bird world of Central Europe. Bright, intermediate and dark morphs can be distinguished. The darkest morphs are almost completely dark-brown to black-brown; fledged young birds to the first moult bear longitudinal stripes on the underside, which sometimes go up to the throat, while adult birds may have horizontal stripes on the underside. The completely banded tail is brown or gray. Intermediate morphs have a less distinct pattern on the whitish to pale yellow underside, sometimes without the typical bib on the bottom of the crop. The tail in the nominate form is gray, brown or rusty red with eight to twelve dark transverse bands. The brightest morphs have a whitish-pale-yellow base color on the underside and the back have significantly less to almost missing wing banding. Pale-yellow individuals often have ocher-brown and gray spots on their backs, giving them a "piebald" appearance.
===Subspecies===
===Subspecies===