hen harrier

American

noun

British.

northern harrier.

hen harrier British

noun

US and Canadian names: marsh hawk. marsh harrier. a common harrier, Circus cyaneus, that flies over fields and marshes and nests in marshes and open land

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of hen harrier

First recorded in 1555–65

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The bog is an important site for biodiversity and is home to the endangered hen harrier.

From BBC

Aside from curlew, they pose a threat to a number of native species including the Orkney vole, short-eared owl and hen harrier.

From BBC

They include endangered birds like hen harriers and water voles, which are now the UK's fastest declining mammal.

From BBC

More than 1,300 protected birds of prey – from hen harriers to golden eagles - have been killed across the UK over the past 15 years, according to the RSPB.

From BBC

It said satellite-location tags showed the hen harriers had vanished from moors including in the Yorkshire Dales.

From BBC

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023