Harrier (bird) Harrier (bird) A harrier is any of the several species of diurnal hawks sometimes placed in the Circinae sub-family of the Accipitridae family of birds of prey. Harriers characteristically hunt by flying low over open ground, feeding on small mammals, reptiles, or birds. The young of the species are sometimes referred to as ring-tail harriers. They are distinctive with long wings, a long narrow tail, the slow and low flight over grasslands and skull peculiarities. The harriers are thought to have diversified with the expansion of grasslands and the emergence of C4 grasses about 6 to 8 million years ago
Spiny-cheeked honeyeater streaks. The throat is often a light brown or cinnamon, sometimes extending from the beak to the upper breast. The wings feathers are a mottled dark olive brown to grey with white edges. The tail has similar colouring but the tips of the tail feathers are white. The under-tail coverts are white or on some birds, light grey often streaked. There seems to be an amount of variability in the bird’s appearance in many bird of this species. One example is on the Mornington Peninsula located on the eastern coast of Port Phillip Bay in Victoria where the birds have