Ferruginous Hawk

Ferruginous Hawk, dark morph adult; Kern Co., CA

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Ferruginous Hawk, light morph adult; central Montana, July.

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1. Cool Facts
2. Description
3. Similar Species
4. Sound
5. Range
6. Food
7. Reproduction
8. Conservation Status
9. Other Names

A raptor of the open country of the West, the Ferruginous Hawk is the largest American hawk.

Cool Facts

• Before the elimination of bison in the West, nests of the Ferruginous Hawk were often partially constructed of bison bones and wool.

• 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.

Description

• Size: 56-69 cm (22-27 in)
• Wingspan: 133-142 cm (52-56 in)
• Weight: 977-2074 g (34.49-73.21 ounces)

Large hawk. Wings long and broad. Large head with a wide gape. Tail white or light gray. In light form, head mostly white, back and shoulders rufous, pale patch in ends of wings, underparts mostly white, legs rufous, making a dark V visible from below. Dark morph entirely dark brown, with light gray or whitish tail, and light area near end of wings. Legs feathered to the toes.

Sex Differences

Sexes similar, but female larger and tending to have more dark markings on legs and belly.

Immature

Juvenile similar to adult, but has lightly banded tail; light form lacks rufous legs and back.Pale Red-tailed Hawk lacks dark legs and reddish on back. Rough-legged Hawk is darker, with broad black tail band, and lacks white comma in wings.

Similar Species

• Pale Red-tailed Hawk lacks dark legs and reddish on back.
• Rough-legged Hawk is darker, with broad black tail band, and lacks white comma in wings.

Sound

Call scratchy "kree-a."

Range

Range Map

© 2004 Cornell Lab of Ornithology

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Summer Range

Breeds from eastern Washington and southern Alberta eastward to southwestern Manitoba and eastern South Dakota, southward to Arizona and the panhandle of Texas.

Winter Range

Winters from northern California and southern Nebraska southward to central Mexico.

Detailed Habitat

Open country, primarily prairies, plain and badlands, breeding in trees near streams or on steep slopes, sometimes on mounds in open desert.

Food

Rabbits, ground squirrels, and prairie dogs.

Reproduction

Clutch Size

Condition at Hatching

Helpless and covered in down.

Conservation Status

Considered threatened in several states.

Other Names

Buse rouileuse (French)
Aquililla patas asperas (Spanish)
Ferruginous Rough-leg (English)

Sources used to construct this page:

Bechard, M. J., and J. K. Schmutz. 1995. Ferruginous Hawk (Buteo regalis). In The Birds of North America, No. 172 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, and The American Ornithologists? Union, Washington, D.C.