BC Conservation Data Centre: Species Summary
Circus hudsonius
Northern Harrier
| Scientific Name: | Circus hudsonius (Linnaeus, 1766) | ||||||||||
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| Scientific Name Synonyms: |
Circus cyaneus
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| English Name: | Northern Harrier | ||||||||||
| Classification / Taxonomy | |||||||||||
| Scientific Name - Concept Reference: | American Ornithologists' Union (AOU). 1957. The AOU check-list of North American birds, 5th ed. Port City Press, Inc., Baltimore, MD. 691 pp. | ||||||||||
| Classification Level: | Species | ||||||||||
| Taxonomy Comments: | C. hudsonius formerly considered conspecific with C. cyaneus but treated as separate on the basis of differences in morphology, plumage, and breeding commensurate with differences between other recognized species of Circus (AOU 2017). September 18, 2017 - Changed from Circus cyaneus to Circus hudsonius as per the 58st Supplement to the AOU Update (DDW). |
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| Species Group: | Vertebrate Animal | ||||||||||
| Species Code: | B-NOHA | ||||||||||
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| Conservation Status / Legal Designation | |||||||||||
| Global Status: | G5 (Aug 2017) | ||||||||||
| Provincial Status: | S4B (Mar 2015) | ||||||||||
| BC List: | Yellow | ||||||||||
| Provincial FRPA list: | |||||||||||
| Provincial Wildlife Act: | |||||||||||
| COSEWIC Status: | Not at Risk (May 1993) | ||||||||||
| SARA Schedule: | |||||||||||
| General Status Canada: | 4 - Secure (2005) | ||||||||||
| Migratory Bird Convention Act: | |||||||||||
| Ecology & Life History | |||||||||||
| General Description: | |||||||||||
| Migration Characteristics: (Global / Provincial) | |||||||||||
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Nonmigrant: Local Migrant: Distant Migrant: Within Borders Migrant: |
N / N N / N N / N na / N |
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| Habitats: (Type / Subtype / Dependence) |
Agriculture / Cultivated Field / Facultative - frequent use
Agriculture / Hedgerow / Facultative - frequent use Agriculture / Pasture/Old Field / Facultative - frequent use Grassland/Shrub / Grassland / Facultative - occasional use Grassland/Shrub / Meadow / Facultative - occasional use Lakes / Lake / Facultative - frequent use Lakes / Pond/Open Water / Facultative - frequent use Other Unique Habitats / Estuary / Facultative - occasional use Riparian / Riparian Herbaceous / Facultative - occasional use Riparian / Riparian Shrub / Facultative - occasional use Stream/River / Stream/River / Facultative - occasional use Wetland / Bog / Facultative - frequent use Wetland / Fen / Facultative - frequent use Wetland / Marsh / Facultative - frequent use Wetland / Swamp / Facultative - frequent use |
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| Food Habits: | |||||||||||
| Global Food Habits Comments: | |||||||||||
| Global Phenology: | |||||||||||
| Provincial Phenology: (1st half of month/ 2nd half of month) |
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| Colonial Breeder: | N | ||||||||||
| Length(cm)/width(cm)/Weight(g): | / / | ||||||||||
| Elevation (m) (min / max): |
Global:
Provincial: |
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| Distribution | |||||||||||
| Endemic: | N | ||||||||||
| Authors / Contributors | |||||||||||
| Global Information Author: | |||||||||||
| Last Updated: | |||||||||||
| Provincial Information Author: | |||||||||||
| Last Updated: | |||||||||||
| References and Related Literature | |||||||||||
Campbell, R.W., N.K. Dawe, I. McTaggart-Cowan, et al. 1990b. The Birds of British Columbia Vol. 2: Nonpasserines: Diurnal Birds of Prey through Woodpeckers. Royal British Columbia Museum, Victoria, BC. |
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Demarchi, M.W. and M.D. Bently. 2005. Best Management Practices for Raptor Conservation during Urban and Rural Land Development in British Columbia. B.C. Minist. of Environ., Victoria, B.C. MoE BMP Series. |
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Please visit the website Conservation Status Ranks for definitions of the data fields used in this summary report.
Suggested Citation:
B.C. Conservation Data Centre. Species Summary: Circus hudsonius. B.C. Minist. of Environment. Available: https://a100.gov.bc.ca/pub/eswp/ (accessed Nov 5, 2026).