Eurasian Marsh Harrier

Latin Name: 
Circus aeruginosus
Category: 
Size: 
55cm
Description: 

Male: dark brown plumage; dull rufous head and breast; silvery-grey wings, tail; black wing-tips (best seen in flight). Female (and young): chocolate-brown;   buff on head and shoulders; like Black Kite, but tail rounded (not forked). Solitary or in pairs; sails low over a marsh, grassland or cultivation; often drops onto ground, frequently vanishing in dense grass and reed growth; perches on mounds or edges of marshes.

Habitat: 
marshes, jheels, wet cultivation.
Food: 
fish, rodents, frogs, small waterbirds, insects.
Distribution: 
winter visitor; common; subcontinent, south of foothills country; most common in N India.
Call: 
Call Description: 
usually silent.
National Status: