Rough-legged Hawk portrait on a frosted perch – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/640, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited
Two days ago I photographed my first Rough-legged Hawk of 2021 at Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge. Or was it two? I’ll explain why it might be two different birds in a bit but first the beginning of the story behind these images.
My morning started out with me wanting to head out into the West Desert but due to circumstances beyond my control I couldn’t. I was dressed, ready to go and quickly decided to head north to Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge instead.
As I drove north on I-15 I wondered what bird species I would photograph first. It was my first trip out into the field in the new year and although the first bird species I photographed in the new year was a European Starling that was done with a cell phone. These are the first photos taken with my bird gear this year.
The first bird I had an opportunity to photograph was a Rough-legged Hawk near the beginning of the auto tour route at the refuge. That hawk took off before I could grab my camera and flew slightly south and landed where I couldn’t get a decent light angle so I let it go. As I got ready to head out into the marshes on the auto tour route I saw another Rough-legged Hawk and slowly backed up to where I could take photos if it.
Covered in a light frost the hawk was so close to the road that with my teleconverter on I opted to take portraits of it first.
Adult Rough-legged Hawk on a frosty morning – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/1000, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR, natural light, not baited
Once I removed my teleconverter I was able to take frame filling, fully body images of the Rough-legged Hawk. As he warmed up in the morning sun he fluffed and preened a bit.
Adult Rough-legged Hawk after rousing – Nikon D500, f8, 1/800, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR, natural light, not baited
And he shook the frost off of his back and neck. He really didn’t seem interested in going out to find breakfast so after taking a few more portraits of him I thanked him and headed onto the auto tour route. The time was 8:52 am.
On the auto tour route I photographed gulls, herons, ducks, eagles, harriers, larks, and a raven from the warmth of my Jeep. The lowest temp I saw that morning was 8°F. It was sunny, peaceful and I was in no hurry.
Rough-legged Hawk with his eye on something – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/3200, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited
When I neared the end of the auto tour route I contemplated making the loop again. Then I saw a hawk on the same perch as the Rough-legged Hawk I photographed earlier and stopped to take photos of it from a different angle. Just seconds after taking this photo the hawk lifted off and flew out into a field after prey but he missed and landed in a tree that I could see in my side view mirror. The time was 10:37 am.
Adult Rough-legged Hawk perched on a thin branch – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/2000, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR, natural light, not baited
By backing up slowly on the snow and ice encrusted dirt road I was able to take more photos of the handsome Rough-legged Hawk. As I watched him through my viewfinder I could tell that he was scanning the open marsh for prey. When he finally lifted off though he head directly back to the perch at the end of the auto tour route. He did have a higher vantage point from it.
Adult Rough-legged Hawk close up – Nikon D500, f7.1, 1/1600, ISO 500, Nikkor 500mm VR with 1.4x TC, natural light, not baited
As I approached him again I decided to put my teleconverter back on so I could take a few more portraits of him before heading towards home.
When I got home and compared photos of my first session with the frosty hawk to the images of the hawk I photographed on my way out of the auto tour route I saw that the chest of the second bird had an area of light plumage on his chest that was definitely wider that it appeared to be on the first hawk I photographed that morning. So now I am not certain whether I photographed the same Rough-legged Hawk twice or if they were two individual birds that were using the same perch. A more alert posture could have made that band of light colored plumage look wider.
I’m not 100% convinced but I believe that it was the same hawk both times because of I see the same pattern in the one feather I have circled in red in the photo above in both portraits of the bird.
Whether it was one hawk or two I know that I enjoyed my time with him. Or them.
Life is good.
Mia
To see more of my Rough-legged Hawk photos plus facts and information about this species click here.
Another great series of hawk pics. What a magnificent bird! Thanks Mia.
Beautiful, just fantastic shots!!
I am happy to see these good results on a morning with such a bad inversion.
Very nice series.
Thank you for this beautiful and uplifting post.
As an aside (a minor aside) the save my name, etc button is no longer working for me. Have you any idea why?
Wow! So close. Beautiful first of the year portrait!
Wonderful start for this year..