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They call adult male northern harriers “Gray Ghost”. Smaller than the females, but much like them, these hunters glide over the marshlands to pounce on their surprised prey from the air. That’s reason one for their nickname. Reason two is how many fewer the males are than the females. I see females often when I’m hanging out in harrier territory. The bird in this photo is only the second adult male I remember seeing in the last ten years of my photography career.
J42 crosses over Camden with an eclectic lash up, consisting of KCS GP38-2 2022, CP SD40-2 6063 & SD30C-ECO 5031. The train had just finished making a set out of stacks in Shoreham.
Fun fact; Northern Harrier fossils dating from 11,000 to 40,000 years ago have been unearthed in northern Mexico.
Last shot (for now) of the Northern Harrier. It was being mobbed by Red-winged Blackbirds, sometimes being harassed by three or four simultaneously while patrolling its (presumed) breeding territory. Such is the life of a raptor.
I made this shot while hiking a trail in Grasslands - at this point the Grey Ghost had not yet singled me out as a threat and begun its threat maneuvers (dive bombing me, as documented in my two previous posts). I'm pretty happy with it. These aerial encounters happen fast and even shooting in burst mode there is no guarantee of getting both subjects on the same focal plane and in a pleasing configuration.
Two or three more species left in the current set, then on to something else...
Photographed in Grasslands National Park, Saskatchewan (Canada). Don't use this image on websites, blogs, or other media without explicit permission ©2023 James R. Page - all rights reserved.
While working against the wind, I watched this beautiful male Northern Harrier (aka Gray Ghost) maneuver about over the hillside. Happy the wind brought him a bit closer to me than typical so he could check me out, and visa versa.
San Luis Obispo, CA.
The Great Gray Owl is often coined as the Gray Ghost mainly due to its ability to glide with silent wingbeats in a phantom-like presence.
Gray Ghost - Male Northern Harrier, my favorite bird!
The "Gray Ghost" refers to the adult male Northern Harrier, a raptor known for its distinctive pale gray plumage and elusive hunting style.
The adult male Northern Harrier is often nicknamed "Gray Ghost" due to its ghostly appearance and spectral aura.
Males have a bluish-gray upper body and white underparts, with black wingtips.
They are known for their low, buoyant flight style, gliding just above the ground while hunting.
Northern Harriers are found in open habitats like grasslands, marshes, and fields across North America.
Northern Harrier is also known as the Marsh Hawk or ring-tailed hawk
Southern Alberta, Canada.
This morning, during my drive to work, in Cherry Creek State Park, at the intersection of the main road and Jordan Road (aka Gun Club Road) this male Northern harrier flew in my direction. The light was grey this morning, perfectly suiting his grey feathers.
This is just one of several "keepers" that I got in under three-seconds of shooting You have to be ready to shoot, with all your settings selected, have the camera readily at hand as you prowl for subjects, make sure that the lens is cool to avoid distortion caused by heat/cold interaction as you shoot the camera out of the car, turn the car off to prevent heat wave distorting the image and, oh yeah, getting the camera aimed on the bird and locked on. My Sony cameras are amazing, but it does take some practice to develop the skills.
There's more to the story. They call the male of this species "The Grey Ghost", not because he's a Confederate Army raider, but because he's so rare to see. In this case, I saw him hunting for a few seconds in the territory of a female Northern harrier, when she swooped in and chased him away. I thought that it might be mating interaction, but there was no playfulness and she drove him straight away, over the tree line and turned back to her territory. I hope that we do have some mating. I think that this male covers a huge territory, including all areas of Cherry Creek State Park.
Great details to observe by viewing full-screen.
Northern Harrier, the Gray Ghost for having a nickname like that this particular bird isn’t very ghostly as he surely isn’t camera shy.
It's been five years since I've photographed a Northern Harrier, and this is my first male! I love their owl-like faces.
Taken this morning in Ottawa.