I spent the whole day at the Ridgefield NWR, Jan. 30, 2017, and a good hour was spent with this semi-rare raptor, the Rough-legged Hawk. She tended to stay far away from me as she hunted the fields. Once she was bullied by a Northern Harrier and the hawk flew off because of it. I continued my loop around the refuge and when I got back to this spot, the hawk had returned to its hunting activities again. In this shot the bird attempted the capture of its lunch, but this try was not successful. The hawk then decided to take to the air and hover from about 50 feet up looking for a snack. Amazingly, this tactic worked and she was successful from her hovering position. Unfortunately, this hovering behavior was too far away to get a decent shot.
Canon 5D Mark III, 1/1250, f4, ISO 1600, 500mm, 1:00 p.m.
