Ferruginous Hawk

 The ferruginous hawk is a large hawk that lives in the central plains of the United States. They are the largest species of buteo, soaring hawks, living in North America. They are fairly easy to identify because of their size, large mouth, and their rusty red color. The color is where they get the common name ferruginous from. It is a variation on the Latin word ferrgin which means iron rust.

The ferruginous hawk is one of only three diurnal raptors in North America that have feathers that reach all the way to their feet. The other two species, the rough-legged hawk and the golden eagle, have ranges that are further north or in higher elevations than the ferruginous. The breeding range of the ferruginous only extends into southern Canada with many of the birds breeding in the northern half of the range migrating to the southwestern U.S. and Mexico for the winter.

Eastern Towhee

The eastern towhee is a passerine found in the eastern half of North America. They nest from the Mississippi River to the Atlantic Coast and as far north as southern portions of Canada. Birds in the northern portion of the range migrate to the southern United States for the winter while birds in the southern portion of the range stay on territory year round.

At one time the spotted towhee, from the western United States, and the eastern towhee were considered the same species and were called the rufous-sided towhee. It was decided that there were enough differences between the two to break them into two different species. There ranges do still over lap in central North America and the species will still interbreed with each other. This is the female eastern Towhee.

Rose-breasted Grosebeak

Dainty Sulphur

 

The dainty sulphur is a small member of the sulphur butterflies. Sulphur butterflies are easy to identify because they are typically mostly yellow in color. The only other primarily yellow butterflies in North America are swallowtails but they are much larger and have "tails" on their hindwings.

 The dainty sulphur is typically found in the southern United States and Mexico, however on some year they invade northward out of their normal range and can be seen as far north as Canada. In 2012 it was an invasion year and I was able to photograph dainty sulphurs around home. Males are often found on the ground in sand or dirt where they are looking for salt which they can present to a female.