Adult male light morph © Bryce Robinson eBird S34193291 Macaulay Library ML 47706471
Immature light morph © Rodney Crice
Juvenile light morph © Chris S. Wood
Adult male light morph © Matthew Pendleton
Juvenile light morph © Ian Davies
+ 9
Adult dark morph © Skye Haas
Juvenile dark morph © Patricia and Richard Williams
Adult dark morph © Harold Ziolkowski
Adult male light morph © Daniel Jauvin
Adult female light morph © Joel Adams
Adult male light morph © Shawn Billerman
Adult male light morph © Steven Mlodinow
Habitat © Ryan Schain

Rough-legged Buzzard Buteo lagopus

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Identification

POWERED BY MERLIN

Long-winged, northern raptor found in open areas like fields and marshes. Plumage variable; light morphs generally pale with dark belly and dark patches on "wrists." Dark morphs have brown or blackish body with finely banded tail and striking white flight feathers. Some birds intermediate. Hovers often, kestrel-like, flapping wings while looking down. Also perches at edges of tree branches and tops of trees, places larger hawks are too heavy to perch. Breeds in far northern tundra and moves south irregularly to winter in open fields and grasslands. Compare with other Buteo hawks, such as Red-tailed Hawk and Common Buzzard, where ranges overlap. Note size, small bill, shaggy feathers on legs, and long and narrow wings.

POWERED BY MERLIN