WCAX.COM Local Vermont News, Weather and Sports-Hawks hunting

I've heard, and I do understand that there are many snow lovers in the area, who are disappointed in our lack of snow these days. But naturalist Bridget Butler tells us, birds of prey are happy to see some exposed ground during the long winter months.

(Bridget Butler/Naturalist)

"Birds of prey? It might be a good thing that we had a little bit of this January thaw because it brings some of those small mammals out into the open."

(Sharon Meyer)

"It must be really hard for them, when there's 30 inches of snow on the ground."

(Bridget Butler/Naturalist)

"It is, and that deep snow is the buffer that those mammals like."

(Bridget Butler/Naturalist)

"Right now, probably the hawk most people see the most often is the red tailed hawk. You see that a lot on the sides of the road. Nice, creamy chest, sometimes a little bit of a reddish brown collar. But there are some other ones that you can look for out there, that may be hunting as well.

There's a larger hawk called a rough legged hawk. And that hawk will hover, so you'll want to look for a bird that kind of stalls out in the air."

(Sharon Meyer)

"Really!"

(Bridget Butler/Naturalist)

"Another one you can look for, is a bird that's going to hover low, over the fields, and kind of flap not a whole lot. And that might be a short eared owl, or it may be a lingering harrier."

(Sharon Meyer)

"So is it easier to see owls and hawks when there is less snow? Or harder?"

(Bridget Butler/Naturalist)

"It's a little bit harder, they're going to spread out, they have all of this nice open ground now. So they're going to be able to spread out and do a lot better hunting. When the snow starts again, look for those hawks and owls out on the edges of habitat, because they're going to look for places where there's not much snow."