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Hen Harrier
last update: Apr 21, 2009 11:11 AM
Also known as the Northern Harrier
Latin name: Circus cyaneus
Population: 1.3 million individuals
Cites classified: Least Concern
Where found: Circumpolar from Scandinavia across Russia to Kamchatka but well south of the Arctic coast and from central Alaska across Canada to southern Quebec and Labrador (absent from the Arctic islands)
Age/ life expectancy: 12 years
Wingspan: 95-120 cm
Length: 40-50 cm
Weight: 350-600 g
Mating/Breeding: The male Northern Harrier attracts a female with a roller-coaster display flight, often performing 25 rises and falls. Loose colonies may form, and males may mate with up to five females in a season, although monogamy is more common. The number of females a male can support is related to the abundance of prey in the spring, which can vary greatly. The male usually starts the nest, and the female then takes over construction. They build the nest on the ground in dense clumps of vegetation. The female incubates the 4 to 6 eggs for 30 to 32 days, and broods them for two weeks after they hatch. The male provides most of the food for the female and nestlings during this period. After two weeks, the nestlings begin to walk around, and at 4 to 5 weeks, they begin to make short flights from the nest area. By 45 days, they make sustained flights. Once they can fly, the parents feed them in mid-air, passing food to the first fledgling to reach them.
Eggs: 4-6 blue-white eggs with few brown blotches
Hibernation: migrates to southern Europe and central Asia east to southern China and Japan and to the southern US from northern Canada and Alaska
Hunting Habits: quarters low over the ground at high speed to flush prey from cover, may also hover for short periods
Feed on: small birds and rodents
Predators: raccoons, skunks, crows, ravens, coyotes, dogs, red foxes, and owls
Colour/Body: Northern Harrier is a slender, medium-sized raptor with a long, barred tail and distinctive white rump. It has an owl-like facial disk that is visible at close range. Harriers are unusual in that there is a greater difference between male and female plumage than is typical of raptors. Females are brown above with varying degrees of brown and buff streaking below. Males are gray above with an unmarked lighter color below; they also have black wingtips. Juveniles are brown above and plain orange-brown below.
Interesting Trivia:
- Unlike other hawks, the Northern Harrier relies on its hearing as well as its vision to capture prey. The feathers of the face are stiff to help transmit sound, and it shows a pronounced "facial disk," much like that of an owl.
