Northern Harrier, Circus cyaneus
The male Harrier is gray above and on the head and breast, sometimes (as here) with gray-brown mottling, white with fine red streaking or spotting below.
The adult female, above and below, has brown upperparts with extensive and variable brown striping on the underparts, as shown below and further down the page. These two pictures show the owl-like facial disk of the Northern Harrier, a distinguishing feature of the species; as with owls, the relatively flat face improves hearing by channeling sound toward the ears. The border around the face consists of feathers that the bird can erect, furthering the sound-directing effect of the facial disk.
The juvenile, above and below, has a light orange breast, mostly clear, with a variable amount of light streaking; the "pumpkin-breast."
A good view of the adult male's light gray head, darker gray upperparts,
and mostly white underparts.
The scattered red markings on the adult male's underparts.
The distinctive flight of the harrier, foraging low over grass fields or marshes, male above, female below.
The breast and belly markings of the adult female vary from the relatively sharp streaks of the bird shown perched on the ground further up the page, and the heavy blotchy brown markings of the bird just above.
Juvenile "pumpkin-breasts" in flight, above and below, with variable fine streaking.
A pumpkin-breast lit up by the setting sun!