Pied Harrier

How to identify

Field marks

1. Male head, neck, back and breast black
2. Male forewing, rump and rest of underparts white
3. Male eyes bright yellow
4. Wings narrow and long in flight, with slightly rounded wingtips

Male, female and young

Female has dark brown upperparts, pale brown to white underparts with dark streaks, a small white rump patch and usually brown eyes; juvenile has darker upperparts than female and rich cinnamon underparts.

Voice

Male gives repeated “kiiy yeee” calls during courtship; female gives a rapid “kee-kee-kee”.

Similar species

Montagu's Harrier

Females and juveniles of the two species closely resemble each other; male Pied Harrier is sharply black and white.

Hen Harrier

Closest to Hen Harrier in size and shape in flight.

Where and when it's recorded

Busiest months: December–February · Most records: Thailand, China, India

Pied Harrier has been recorded at 556 of the 8,276 birding hotspots we track, in 19 countries and regions.

Records by month Northern Hemisphere

Where it's recorded most

1. Baruipur MarshesIndia617 records
2. Ang Trapeang ThmorCambodia346 records
3. Ban Thi paddies – eastThailand308 records

Countries and regions with the most records

ThailandChinaIndiaCambodiaLaosRussiaNepalSingapore

eBird records via GBIF up to 2024-12-31. A record means someone listed it; more records partly mean more birders, not more birds.

About

The pied harrier (Circus melanoleucos) is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, named for the male's distinctive white and black colouration.

Excerpt from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · authors · Read more on Wikipedia

Questions