CLIPBOARD : BREEDING BIRDS : NORTHERN HARRIER (Circus cyaneus)

Description: The body is slim with long wings and tail. All plumages show distinctive white patch on rump and owl-like mask. Adult males are gray above and white below with rust speckles. Adult females are brown above, white below with heavy brown streaking. Immatures resemble females but are orangish-brown below with streaking on chest only; inside wing linings are also orange-brown. These harriers perch low and fly close to the ground with wings upraised. Length: 17 to 24 inches.

Habitat: Wetlands, savanna, marshes and fields.

Diet: Voles, birds, snakes, grasshoppers, frogs and carrion.

Displays: Courting male performs mid-flight dives, including barrel-rolls in U-shaped loops.

Nest: Loosely built nest of twigs; on slightly elevated ground or in thick vegetation. First Orange County nest was found this year near Crystal Cove State Park.

Eggs: Unmarked, bluish-white. Length: 1.8 inches.

Call: Nasal whistle, pee, pee, pee.

Notes: Also called the marsh hawk. Due to ground nesting, the northern harrier is subject to man-made and environmental attacks. Diminishing open country is resulting in a lack of available hunting area.

Breeding bird atlas: To report bird breeding activity in your neighborhood, or to get information on the breeding bird atlas, call Sea and Sage Audubon Society members Sylvia Gallagher, (714) 962-8990, or Nancy Kenyon, (714) 786-3160.

Note: Map is divided into 5-kilometer squares so that Audubon Society volunteers can more easily survey areas on a regular basis.

Sources: Sea and Sage Audubon Society; “The Birder’s Handbook,” Ehrlich, Dobkin and Wheye, Fireside Books (1988); “Field Guide to the Birds of North America,” National Geographic Society (1987); “Birds of Southern California: Status and Distribution,” Garrett and Dunn, Los Angeles Audubon Society (1981).