Measurements
Both Sexes
- Length
- 22–27.2 in
56–69 cm - Wingspan
- 52.4–55.9 in
133–142 cm - Weight
- 34.5–73.2 oz
977–2074 g
Other Names
- Ferruginous Rough-leg
- Buse rouileuse (French)
- Aquililla patas asperas (Spanish)
Cool Facts
- Before the elimination of bison in the West, nests of the Ferruginous Hawk were often partially constructed of bison bones and wool.
- The Rough-legged Hawk, the Ferruginous Hawk, and the Golden Eagle are the only American hawks to have legs feathered all the way to the toes.
Habitat
Grassland
Open country, primarily prairies, plain and badlands, breeding in trees near streams or on steep slopes, sometimes on mounds in open desert.
Food
Mammals
Rabbits, ground squirrels, and prairie dogs.
Nesting
Nesting Facts
- Clutch Size
- 1–8 eggs
- Condition at Hatching
- Helpless and covered in down.
Nest Placement
Tree
Behavior
Soaring
Conservation
Least Concern
Considered threatened in several states.
Credits
- Bechard, M. J., and J. K. Schmutz. 1995. Ferruginous Hawk (Buteo regalis). In The Birds of North America, No. 172 (A. Poole and F. Gill, eds.). The Academy of Natural Sciences, Philadelphia, and The American Ornithologists’ Union, Washington, D.C.