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Description:Large hawk. Wings long and broad. Large head with a wide gape. Tail white or light gray. In light form, head mostly white, back and shoulders rufous, pale patch in ends of wings, underparts mostly white, legs rufous, making a dark V visible from below. Dark morph entirely dark brown, with light gray or whitish tail, and light area near end of wings. Legs feathered to the toes.
Description:Large falcon, medium-sized hawk. Pale brown back and markings. Whitish chest with brown spots and bars. Dark mustache mark on face. Dark ear patch. Long pointed wings. Dark patch in "armpits."
Description:Large, white waterbird.
Long bill with extensible pouch.
Legs short.
Body large and heavy.
Feet webbed.
Wings long and broad, with black trailing edge.
Tail short.
Wandering Birds of the Great Basin is a series of interactive maps showing the movements of 3 birds (1 ferruginous hawk, 1 American white pelican, and 1 prairie falcon) that were tracked using satellite telemetry.
Wandering Birds of the Great Basin
Springtime on the Snake River, in southern Idaho. A young field biologist braces
against a biting wind late one afternoon. Searching, searching through binoculars
he finds his target -- this Prairie Falcon (Falco mexicanus) returning
to its nest area after a 3000-km journey...
Prairie falcon in flight.
USGS
On a blustery fall morning a cowboy in western Nevada peers toward the rising sun.
In his line of sight, perched on a windmill, backlit by the blue sky, he sees these
hawks. The cowboy has seen a few hawks in his time and he can tell by thier size,
pale breasts, and rusty legs that these are Ferruginous Hawks (Buteo regalis).
He wonders, "What brought them here on a fall morning? ... Where did they
come from?"...
Ferruginous Hawks perched on a windmill.
Photo by Will Keely
What do these birds and people have in common? They all live in the sagebrush-dominated
landscapes we know as the Great Basin and Columbia
Plateau. The main difference is that for the most part the people stay put
and don't realize -- barely even think about -- how this vast region functions as
an integrated whole. The birds have a different view. Through their annual cycles
they move throughout the region and beyond. Different parts of the Great Basin contribute
to each bird's survival as their migratory routes take them through Idaho, Utah,
Nevada and ... where else?
Click on the button below to enter the world of 'Wandering' Birds. Soar with pelicans and stoop with
falcons as you discover how these birds depend on the entire region for sustenance.
Learn how these birds provide a link between cowboy, boater, and biologist. Let
the birds teach us how every action, no matter how small or local, is connected
with the health of the entire Great Basin and beyond.
A boater on the Great Salt Lake, out for a weekend of fun and relaxation, is lying
on her back enjoying the afternoon breeze. In her view is this large formation
of American White Pelicans (Pelicanus erythrorhynchos) soaring over
the sagebrush desert. The vision stimulates her awareness of the contrast between
cool blue lake and dry gray-green desert. Where ever these pelicans came from must
be a long way away...
