{"id":13559,"date":"2014-01-17T04:34:59","date_gmt":"2014-01-17T11:34:59","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/?p=13559"},"modified":"2025-09-30T10:11:04","modified_gmt":"2025-09-30T15:11:04","slug":"snow-birds-rough-legged-hawks","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2014\/01\/17\/snow-birds-rough-legged-hawks\/","title":{"rendered":"Snow Birds – Rough-legged Hawks"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Rough-leggedRough-legged Hawk in flight – Nikon D300, f6.3, 1\/1250, ISO 500, +0.7 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 257mm, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

When I lived in Florida we called the tourists that came to the state for the winter “Snow Birds” because it seemed that they flocked down to the state to escape the cold and snow of the north.<\/p>\n

Those “Snow Birds” caused huge traffic messes, long lines at the grocery stores, and frustration for the people who lived in Florida year round. Can’t say I ever met anyone living in Florida that was sad to see them go north in the spring. \ud83d\ude09<\/p>\n

When I lived in Virginia the “Snow Birds” were actual birds that showed up in my yard and feeders just before the first snow of the winter, mostly they were Juncos and White-throated Sparrows.<\/p>\n

Those “Snow Birds” were a delight to see and listen to and I was always sorry when they left.<\/p>\n

Here in Utah I see flocks of people in RVs and hauling camping trailers from Idaho, Montana, and Canada migrating south for the winter to Arizona, Nevada, and New Mexico. I guess they could also be called “Snow Birds”.<\/p>\n

But for me the “Snow Birds” I have grown to love here in Utah are Rough-legged Hawks who only visit in the winter and spend the rest of their lives breeding in high subarctic and Arctic regions.<\/p>\n

\"Rough-leggedRough-legged Hawk on a hoar frost covered tree\u00a0– Nikon D300, f6.3, 1\/640, ISO 640, +0.7 EV, Nikkor 200-400mm VR with 1.4x TC at 321mm, natural light, not baited<\/span><\/p>\n

Rough-legged Hawks don’t cause frustration for the residents of Utah or long lines at the grocery stores but on occasion they can cause traffic jams when a group of bird photographers spot one at Farmington Bay Waterfowl Management Area.<\/p>\n

Well, the traffic jam might only be two or three vehicles which isn’t really a problem.<\/p>\n

I think of Rough-legged Hawks<\/span><\/a> as my Utah “Snow Birds” and like my Juncos and White-throated Sparrows from Virginia I am always sad to see go north in the spring.<\/p>\n

Life is<\/em> good.<\/p>\n

Mia<\/p>\n

Click here<\/span><\/a> to view more of my Rough-legged Hawk photos plus facts and information about this species.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

But for me the “Snow Birds” I have grown to love here in Utah are Rough-legged Hawks who only visit in the winter and spend the rest of their lives breeding in high subarctic and Arctic regions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":158606,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":true,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[511,27,1022,697,1087,26],"tags":[4004,2663,6577,4275,2497,4070,4052,4122,3983,4033,4169,4201,6583,2670,4104,153,1648,4081,4018,4427,373],"class_list":["post-13559","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-antelope-island-state-park","category-avian","category-davis-county-utah","category-farmington-bay-wma","category-rough-legged-hawks","category-utah","tag-adult","tag-birds-of-prey","tag-branches","tag-buteo-lagopus","tag-buteos","tag-female","tag-flight","tag-flying","tag-frost","tag-hawk","tag-hawks","tag-hoar-frost","tag-leaves","tag-light-morph","tag-perched","tag-raptors","tag-rough-legged-hawk","tag-salt-lake-valley","tag-sky","tag-tree","tag-winter"],"aioseo_notices":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/rough-legged-hawk-flight-mia-mcpherson-8891.jpg","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p11Mom-3wH","jetpack_sharing_enabled":false,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":107524,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2022\/10\/25\/rough-legged-hawk-season-has-begun\/","url_meta":{"origin":13559,"position":0},"title":"Rough-legged Hawk Season Has Begun","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"October 25, 2022","format":false,"excerpt":"Rough-legged Hawk season has begun in northern Utah. I spotted my first of season Rough-legged Hawks on the wing last Friday.","rel":"","context":"In "Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge"","block_context":{"text":"Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/locations\/utah\/bear-river-migratory-bird-refuge\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Male light morph Rough-legged Hawk on a February morning, Bear River Migratory Bird Refuge, Box Elder County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/rough-legged-hawk-adult-male-info-sign-mia-mcpherson-9795.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/rough-legged-hawk-adult-male-info-sign-mia-mcpherson-9795.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/rough-legged-hawk-dense-fog-mia-mcpherson-9937.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/rough-legged-hawk-dense-fog-mia-mcpherson-9937.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/rough-legged-hawk-dense-fog-mia-mcpherson-9937.jpg?resize=525%2C300&ssl=1 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/12\/rough-legged-hawk-dense-fog-mia-mcpherson-9937.jpg?resize=700%2C400&ssl=1 2x"},"classes":[]},{"id":10162,"url":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/2013\/11\/05\/dorsal-view-of-a-rough-legged-hawk-in-flight\/","url_meta":{"origin":13559,"position":3},"title":"Dorsal View Of A Rough-legged Hawk In Flight","author":"Mia McPherson","date":"November 5, 2013","format":false,"excerpt":"I woke up to a fine layer of snow on the ground this morning and silly as it may sound that gets me excited for the birds that over winter in the Salt Lake Valley such as this Rough-legged Hawk.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Dorsal view of a Rough-legged Hawk in flight, Antelope Island State Park, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/rough-legged-hawk-dorsal-view-mia-mcpherson-7244.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/rough-legged-hawk-dorsal-view-mia-mcpherson-7244.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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McPherson","date":"January 23, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Many of the birds here in the Salt Lake Valley find a place to roost in the evening and overnight frost begins to accumulate on their feathers like it did on this Rough-legged Hawk on a parking sign.","rel":"","context":"In "Birds"","block_context":{"text":"Birds","link":"https:\/\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/category\/avian\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"Rough-legged Hawk on a parking sign, Farmington Bay WMA, Davis County, Utah","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/rough-legged-hawk-snow-fog-mia-mcpherson-4026.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.onthewingphotography.com\/wings\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/09\/rough-legged-hawk-snow-fog-mia-mcpherson-4026.jpg?resize=350%2C200&ssl=1 1x, 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