Northern Hawk Owl

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Northern Hawk Owl in the UK

Northern Hawk Owl is one of the rarest birds on the British List (Category A), with only a handful of accepted records. The first was caught exhausted on a ship off Cornwall in 1830 and belonged to the North American race. Two 19th century Scottish birds, in Shetland in 1860 and Aberdeenshire in 1898, were of the European race. A review in 2010 removed several other old claims from the record. The last British bird was in Shetland in September 1983, seen at Frakkafield and then on Bressay. None has been recorded since.

Where and when to see a Northern Hawk Owl

Do not plan a trip around one. If another arrives, the Northern Isles and the east coast of Scotland are the likeliest places, in autumn or winter. Because it hunts by day and sits on treetops, posts and wires, it would probably be found quickly, and news would go out at once on the bird news services. The nearest regular birds are in the northern forests of Norway, Sweden and Finland, where winter is the easiest season to find them.

Habitat, diet and field notes

Habitat: Boreal forest (extreme vagrant).
Diet: Voles.
Field note: Long-tailed.

How to identify a Northern Hawk Owl

A medium-sized owl, about the size of a Tawny Owl but slimmer, with a long, tapering tail that gives it a hawk-like outline. The face is whitish with a bold black border down each side, and the eyes are yellow. The underparts are white with fine dark bars from breast to tail. The upperparts are dark brown, spotted white. It perches upright and exposed on the very top of a tree in daylight. Flight is fast and low on pointed wings, like a Sparrowhawk, ending in an upward swoop to a perch.

Call and song

A vagrant would almost certainly be silent. On the breeding grounds the male gives a long, bubbling trill lasting several seconds, and the alarm is a sharp, repeated, falcon-like 'kee-kee-kee'. Heard something you cannot place? Bird Hear identifies UK birds from a 10 second recording, free in your browser.

Confusion species

• Short-eared Owl: Short-eared Owl also flies by day but is long-winged and short-tailed, streaked not barred, and floats low over open ground.
• Sparrowhawk: A Sparrowhawk in flight has the same long-tailed shape but a small head; the owl's head is large, broad and flat-faced.

Related guide UK raptors and owls.

Conservation status and Birdedex points

In the Birdedex the Northern Hawk Owl is a Legendary tier bird, worth +50 points when you log one. It is not on the Red or Amber lists in Birds of Conservation Concern 5.

Recent UK sightings

Similar birds

• Crested Honey BuzzardLegendary · Forest (extreme vagrant)
• Lesser Spotted EagleLegendary · Forest edge (extreme vagrant)
• White-backed WoodpeckerLegendary · Old forest (extreme vagrant)
• Acadian FlycatcherLegendary · Scrub (extreme vagrant)
• Alder FlycatcherLegendary · Scrub (extreme vagrant)
• Aleutian TernLegendary · Seabird colonies (extreme vagrant)

Northern Hawk Owl: quick answers

Has a Northern Hawk Owl ever been seen in the UK?

Yes, but only a handful of times and not since 1983. Most records are from the 1800s. The 1983 Shetland bird was photographed and is the most recent.

Where can I see a Northern Hawk Owl in the UK?

Realistically, you cannot. More than forty years have passed since the last one. Birders who want to see the species travel to Scandinavia or Finland, where it breeds in open northern forest and moves south in some winters when vole numbers crash.

What does a Northern Hawk Owl eat?

Mostly voles, which it spots from a high perch and drops onto. In winter it also takes birds, up to the size of grouse. It hunts mainly by sight and in daylight, which is unusual for an owl.

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