Male Northern Harrier
Photo by Matt Valencic

Winter Raptors. The five featured species for this season: Merlin, Snowy Owl, Northern Harrier, Rough-legged Hawk, and Short-eared Owl eat other birds (Merlin) and small mammals. They are only in NE Ohio during the winter months. When the weather warms in March they head north to breed in the Arctic (Snowy Owl and Rough-legged Hawk) or in the Boreal Forests of Canada, always near open fields, marshes or along rivers where they hunt for small birds or mammals.