Harlan’s Hawk On A Coot Kill (graphic)

On January 18 I photographed this Harlan’s Hawk at Farmington Bay WMA.  Harlan’s is a relatively rare and very dark subspecies of the Red-tailed Hawk that breeds in Alaska and northern Canada but winters in the western U.S. and the Great Plains.  I posted two other shots of this bird on January 20.    1/3200, f/7.1, ISO 400, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc, natural light, not baited, set up or called in  On this day I only had a few moments with the hawk before it took off.       1/2500, f/8, ISO 500, 500 f/4, natural light, not baited, set up or called in Then, on January 22, we located the bird once again within just a few yards of where it had been four days earlier.  This time it was at the bottom of a creek gully feeding on a freshly killed American Coot.  The angle was steep and it’s not the most attractive setting but the behavior was interesting so I took lots of photos of this juvenile, if for no other reason than documentation of an unusual bird enjoying a meal.       1/2500, f/8, ISO 500, 500 f/4, natural light, not baited, set up or called in  The bird was only nervous with our presence for a few moments, then resumed eating its meal with enthusiasm.  Here it has a beak-full of feathers that it had a difficult time shaking off.       1/2000, f/7.1, ISO 500, 500 f/4, natural light, not baited, set up or called in  I spent over 5 minutes with this…

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Harlan’s Hawk

Harlan’s Hawk is today considered to be a sub-species of the Red-tailed Hawk but its classification has a colorful history as it has twice been considered a separate species and twice as a race of the Red-tailed Hawk.  The controversy continues today as several “experts” lobby to have the Harlan’s reinstated as a distinct species. In 1831 John James Audubon originally named this bird Harlan’s Buzzard, after his good friend Dr. Richard Harlan of Philadelphia.    1/2000, f/7.1, ISO 400, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc, natural light, not baited, set up or called in Harlan’s Hawks are quite similar to western Red-tailed Hawks but typically they are “colder/blacker” in overall color, with the tendency toward dusky-white tails in the ventral view.   At rest, wing tips are obviously shorter than tail tips (easily seen here) and their breasts are variably streaked with white.        1/2000, f/7.1, ISO 400, 500 f/4, 1.4 tc, natural light, not baited, set up or called in In this view you can make out another identifying feature – the barring to the tips of the wing primaries (most easily seen here in the left wing). Harlan’s Hawks are found in Alaska and northern Canada but winter in the western United States and the Great Plains.  I’ve had very few (if any) photo opportunities with them but found this juvenile (light eye) two days ago at Farmington Bay. I’m always delighted to photograph a “new” bird, particularly when it’s a raptor. Ron      

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