Young Northern Harrier flying over a marsh – Nikon D500, f6.3, 1/6400, ISO 640, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited
Last week I was able to photograph this young Northern Harrier flying over a marsh on a trip up to Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge. It was cold, sunny and there was some snow on the Promontory Mountains that are seen in the background of this image.
I saw plenty of birds at the refuge but most were too far away to obtain high quality images of them or they took off before I could get my lens on them. It was disappointing to come home with so few images of birds but it felt great to be out in the marshes.
Some of you may wonder how I know that this Northern Harrier is a young/immature bird. One of the easiest ways to tell is because this harrier has buffy-orange to cinnamon colored feathers with minimal streaking on her breast and belly which is typical for young birds of this species.
Adult male Northern Harriers have white breasts and bellies with some gray to gray-brown streaking on their upper breasts, adult females are pale to light colored below and have brown streaking on their breasts and bellies.
I determined the sex of this Northern Harrier because she has dark eyes. Generally by this time of the year the immature males have lighter colored eyes. In September and October I have noticed that almost all of the immature Northern Harriers I see and photograph have dark colored eyes and during that time I wouldn’t even attempt to identify their gender. By November I have noticed that I can see a difference in the eye color of immature Northern Harriers here in northern Utah.
Could I be wrong about her sex? It is possible. I am far more confident in late December about calling her a female than I would be earlier in the fall.
Northern Harrier fly over
This young male Northern Harrier was photographed on November 25, 2009 at Farmington Bay WMA. His underparts are still buffy-orange to cinnamon colored and his eyes are a light, almost straw colored yellow. Their eye color can vary at this age and can almost look greenish-yellow at times.
Immature Northern Harrier female in flight over Farmington Bay WMA
The timing of the change of eye color in young Northern Harriers can also vary so there are times when I label a dark-eyed immature bird a female that I know I could be incorrect.
I labeled the immature Northern Harrier in the photo above taken on December 12, 2013 as a female because of her dark eyes. I could say she is a “presumed” female but as seen in the photo directly above this one the young male already had light colored eyes by the last week of November.
One thing to remember is that not all brownish colored Northern Harriers in the fall and winter are adult females because the immature birds have brownish colored upperparts too. Look for the buffy-orange to cinnamon colored feathers on the basically unstreaked underparts for young Northern Harriers.
Life is good.
Mia
Click here to view more of my Northern Harrier photos plus facts and information about this species.
Summed up in one word…magnificent! Thanks Mia.
She is quite the gorgeous gal and you have taken a fabulous shot of her!
Wow, great captures! I really did have that first response upon seeing the first image. Thank you for the IDing tips, do hope to put them into practice.
Majestic marvels – regardless of age and gender. Thank you – for both the glorious photos and for my continuing education.
Gorgeous photos, Mia
wishing you a happy and blessed New Year.
Beautiful, crazy good shot!!
Envious, Envious!!
Thanks for the explanation of determining gender in these lovely hawks. The manager at the California Raptor Centers, where I volunteered for 17 years, taught me these same details of eye color and its changes. Your photos of the birds are grand.