Montagu's Harrier

Montagu's Harrier is a slender, graceful, long-winged raptor and the most aerial and buoyant of the harrier species regularly seen in Europe, well known for its long migration to Africa each year.

Appearance

• Adult males: pale blue-grey above with a black bar across the secondaries (visible from above and below), black wingtips, and rufous streaking on the flanks and underwing coverts.
• Adult females: brown above with streaked underparts, a banded tail, and a pale collar; closely resembles female Hen Harrier but slimmer.
• Juveniles: warm rufous-orange underparts with little streaking, distinct from juvenile Hen Harrier.
• Narrow, pointed wings and a long tail give a very light, tern-like flight action.

Key field marks

• Slim build with narrow, pointed wings and buoyant, almost tern-like flight
• Male shows a black bar across the wing (secondaries) and rufous streaks on flanks/underwing, unlike Hen Harrier
• Juveniles are strikingly plain rufous-orange below with an unstreaked look
• Longer-winged and lighter-flying than Hen Harrier, with quicker, more flexible wingbeats

Similar species

• Hen Harrier male lacks the black secondary bar and rufous flank streaking; female Hen Harrier is bulkier with broader wings.
• Pallid Harrier male is paler with a narrower black wingtip wedge and no secondary bar; females are extremely similar and separated mainly by underwing pattern and structure.
• Western Marsh Harrier is much larger and bulkier with a heavier flight.

Habitat

Originally a bird of open steppe, grassland, marshes, and heathland, but across much of modern Europe it now breeds mainly in cereal and arable farmland, adapting to nest among crops.

Range

Breeds patchily across Europe into western and central Asia; a genuine long-distance migrant among the harriers.

Migration

Winters almost entirely in sub-Saharan Africa, making one of the longest migrations of any European raptor, crossing the Sahara twice each year.

Behavior

Hunts with light, buoyant, tern-like flight low over open ground, frequently changing direction to surprise prey; often nests loosely colonially where suitable habitat and food supply allow.

Voice

Generally quiet away from the breeding grounds; gives a fast, high-pitched chattering 'kek-kek-kek' near the nest and during display flights.

Feeding

Takes small mammals (especially voles), small birds, lizards, and large insects, hunted by quartering low over crops, grassland, and marsh vegetation.

Nesting & breeding

Nests on the ground, often within growing cereal crops in modern agricultural landscapes, which makes nests vulnerable to harvesting machinery; lays 3-5 eggs; conservation programs in some countries locate and protect nests in farmland during harvest.