Rough-legged Hawk
Rough-legged Hawk
Rough-legged Hawk
Rough-legged Hawk

Rough-legged Hawk

Buteo lagopus

Mass

~950 g

Habitat

Grasslands and meadows

Diet

Small vertebrates

How to recognize it

Medium-large hawk, long wings and tail; wingtips reach or pass tail tip when perched
Light morph: white underparts, dark wrist patch, white tail with a broad dark band near the end
Often hovers in one spot with rapid wingbeats
Alarm call: long descending whistle, often like kee-eer

The Rough-legged Hawk has the look of a northern raptor built for cold air, with long wings and feathered legs. In flight it feels stretched out, and when perched the wing tips may reach past the tail.

It is easiest to notice by how it hunts. It can hover over open ground for a long time, and its alarm call is a drawn-out, descending whistle.

In summer it stays in tundra and forest-tundra, then moves south for winter. It feeds mainly on lemmings and other small northern mammals, but it also takes avian prey.

You might also see

European Honey-buzzard

European Honey-buzzard

Pernis apivorus
Short-toed Snake-Eagle

Short-toed Snake-Eagle

Circaetus gallicus
Lesser Spotted Eagle

Lesser Spotted Eagle

Clanga pomarina
Greater Spotted Eagle

Greater Spotted Eagle

Clanga clanga
Booted Eagle

Booted Eagle

Hieraaetus pennatus
Golden Eagle

Golden Eagle

Aquila chrysaetos

Sources