Rough-Legged Hawk

rlha

Geographic Range: The Rough-legged Hawk breeds in the far north and occurs in MN as a winter visitor.

Length: Length ranges from 19-24 inches with a 4-5 foot wingspan.

Weight: 715-1400g

Description: Large hawk with long broad wings. The flight feathers are pale, with dark trailing edge to wings-black marks at wrists. The tail is broad, with white at base and broad dark tip. The body is commonly is pale, streaked chest and broad dark belly. May be all dark, but still with pale wing feathers and white at base of tail.

Habitat: This hawk spends the summer in the tundra and extreme northern taiga, and the winter in open lowland areas of prairies, marshes, and agricultural area across North America and Eurasia.

Typical Diet: Lemmings, voles, and other rodents.

Special Notes:

The nest of the Rough-legged Hawk sometimes contains the bones of caribou along with sticks.
The name "Rough-legged" Hawk refers to the feathered legs. The Rough-legged Hawk, the Ferruginous Hawk, and the Golden Eagle are the only American hawks to have legs feathered all the way to the toes.
They have a habit of hovering in one spot, as Kestrels and Ospreys do.