Cool Facts About Rough-Legged Hawks The name "Rough-legged" hawk refers to the feathered legs. The rough-legged hawk, the ferruginous hawk, and the golden eagle are the only American raptors to have legs feathered all the way to the toes. The extra feathers help to keep legs warm. Rough-legged hawks have been shown to hunt more in areas experimentally treated with vole urine than in control areas. They may be able to see this waste (as American kestrels can), which is visible in ultraviolet light, in order to find patches of abundant prey. Nonbreeding adults eat about a quarter-pound of food daily, or a tenth of their body mass—that’s about 5 small mammals. On Seedskadee NWR, individuals have been observed catching and eating a meadow or sagebrush vole about every 20 minutes. They hunt by hovering in place over vole habitat, then diving down and grabbing them on the ground. They try to not draw attention and eat fast, often swallowing whole. Other raptors and even coyotes may try to steal the vole from them. They are common on Seedskadee and Cokeville Meadows NWRs during the coldest part of the year. December through February are the best times to see them here. They begin to head north in March and by mid to late April are gone. www.allaboutbirds.org/…/Rough-legged_Ha…/lifehistory