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Dalton
Dalton
is a Rough-Legged Hawk (Buteo lagopus) who was brought
to us in March of 2003 after sustaining gunshot wounds to her right
wing. Part of her wing was removed by the individual that found her
as it was barley attached any longer. She lost her primary feathers
and can no longer fly. Recently, Dalton was DNA sexed and we
discovered that she was not male as we had originally thought. Even
though her name is confusing we will likely not change it.
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Rough-Legged Hawks are so named because their legs are feathered down to
their feet, whereas most hawks have bare legs. This feathering is
thought to be an adaptation to cold environments. In the winter they will migrate down into Washington
and other areas of the northern United States. They are similar in size
to the Red Tailed Hawks but their coloring is more varied ranging from
very light to almost black. Most birds have a light head and chest
and a white tail with a dark terminal band. Black wrist patches make
them easy to identify in flight.Rough-Legged Hawks are among the group of soaring hawks and they will
hunt by circling over open fields or tundra or from tall perches like
telephone poles or snags. Their diets primarily consist of lemmings when
in their northern habitat; they will also eat other small rodents and
birds. Their feet are quite small when compared to those of Red Tailed
Hawks which indicates that they are adapted to smaller prey.
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