Whatbird.com

Finally got a decent photo of a raptor in flight, thought I would share.

http://picasaweb.google.com/lh/photo/KpvTdqF5ngXn8mf6OkyXPA?authkey=Gv1sRgCLm36-Toy671Ag&feat=directlink

Nice picture - these guys can be hard to get.  They turn on a dime so it's hard to predict where they're heading.

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New for 2010: horned lark, prairie falcon, red-necked grebe, bewick's wren, snow bunting

Very nice!  The lighting is perfect.  Beats the heck out of my one Harrier shot.

That's indeed, a lovely shot

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"We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals."
Immanuel Kant

Very nice! May I ask where you took it? The N Harriers aren't too common here in Palm Beach County, would be happy to travel to see one...

They're common here in Florida and Georgia

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"We can judge the heart of a man by his treatment of animals."
Immanuel Kant

Well, evidently I am not looking in the right places. As I said, despite many, many, many trips in Palm Beach County to parks, refuges and etc I have yet to see one. The only one I have seen here in FL was at Viera Wetlands.

susan, if you go to some type of field/marsh/ag field and spend a few hours there in the winter/fall, you will see one.  crawfish ponds and rice fields are the best, and they are usually much easier to get around than a real marsh or swamp.  hope you get one, i love watching them too since they are one of the most active raptors you can study.  not like a boring RT hawk sitting still in the top of a pecan tree for hours (kidding).

I saw mine (the one I got the mediocre shot of) at Orlando Wetlands Park.  I've been there probably ten times now, but I've only seen the Harrier once.

The photo was taken in the ag fields in south dade before the entrance to Everglades National Park. There have been several there in the last few months.

these birds love those open, wet fields, and can be easily found when one is patient.  today, i was in the cane field behind my house, trying to obs/photo some sparrows.  just as i was about to move to another area, i looked up and a northern harrier was gliding over the treeline and dropping altitude about to start hunting the portions of the field where the cane had recently been harvested.  my point is, if you have good harrier territory, stick with it, and you will see one.  the harriers in the area know where the good hunting fields are and make rounds all day between their favorite hunting grounds.  these birds are such active hunters, that if you survey good habitat for long enough (usually does not take long) one will show up eventually.

Thanks to all for your responses.

Natureboy, I guess my point was FINDING the territory, as I have not had that opportunity as of yet. I must say that we don't usually bird over ag fields, so thats probably why I haven't found a territory.  Another day.....

This poor shot is my first encounter with a Northern Harrier.  I actually did a double take, not expecting to see something like this in the middle of an alfalfa field.  I find birding to be as much seeing them as looking for them.  Many of the birds that I have caught I wasn't actually looking for.  Be careful as I think birding may be more dangerous then texting.... 

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Latest Birds: Sage Thrasher, Ferruginous Hawk, Common Goldeneye

I love Northern Harriers, they are one of my favorite birds! I have a male, female, and juvenile Northern Harrier that patrol my alfalfa and oat fields.  I have seen them catch prey a few times, but the greatest thing I have seen is a male Northern Harrier performing his courtship flight.  He flew almost straight up, making kek kek kek noises. Then he dove straight down, twisting and spinning in the air.  Then he landed on the ground out of sight, and after a minute he flew back up with a female Northern Harrier and they circled together until they were out of sight. It was beautiful.  I don't have any pictures of that because I didn't own a camera when I saw it.  Here is a picture of the Juvenile Northern Harrier with a catch they made.  Not sure what he caught though.  Sorry it's not the best picture but the camera didn't focus the way I wanted it too.

 

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