The Northern Harrier is the hawk that hunts like an owl, quartering low over marshes and fields on long wings held in a shallow V, tilting and rocking as it goes. A conspicuous white patch at the base of the tail (the rump) is the best field mark in any plumage, visible as the bird courses over the grass. Uniquely among North American hawks, it has an owl-like facial disk of stiff feathers that funnels sound to its ears, letting it hunt partly by ear as it drifts just above the vegetation.
The sexes look strikingly different: adult males are pale, ghostly gray ("gray ghosts"), while females and young birds are warm brown. Harriers hunt small mammals — especially voles — along with birds and reptiles, dropping suddenly into the grass on prey they hear or see. In Michigan they breed on the ground in marshes and wet meadows, and their numbers swell in migration and winter, when open fields across the state may host hunting birds.
Hunts primarily small mammals, especially voles and mice, along with small birds, reptiles, and amphibians, coursing low over open ground and dropping onto prey. Its owl-like facial disk helps it locate hidden prey by sound as well as sight, an unusual trait among hawks.
Look for a slim hawk flying low over open ground on long wings held in a shallow V, with a bold white rump patch at the base of the tail. Males are pale gray, females and young are brown; all show the white rump.
The harrier has a facial disk of stiff feathers, like an owl's, that channels sound to its ears. This lets it hunt partly by ear, detecting mice and voles hidden in the grass as it flies low overhead.
Over marshes, wet meadows, grasslands, and open fields. Harriers breed in Michigan wetlands and are most numerous in migration and winter, when they hunt open country across the state.
Juveniles are rich cinnamon below and dark chocolate above, unstreaked or nearly so, and they hold that plumage through their first winter. All ages share the white rump patch and low, tilting flight.
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