# Swamp harrier (*Circus approximans*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/swamp-harrier  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The swamp harrier (Circus approximans) is a species in the family Accipitridae, order Accipitriformes. Recorded adults weigh 640 g to 870 g and live up to 17.3 years. Source checklists list it for 1 country: Australia. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 640 g – 870 g |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Wingspan | 1.18 m – 1.45 m |
| Lifespan | 17.3 years |
| Diet | Carnivore |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 18 years |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | wetland |
| Young per litter or clutch | 3.5 – 3.77 |
| Lifestyle | Aerial |
| Migration | Partial |
| Conservation status | Least Concern (IUCN) |
| Countries on record | 1 country |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Aves
- order: Accipitriformes
- family: Accipitridae
- genus: Circus
- species: *Circus approximans* Peale, 1849

Synonyms: *Circus approximans approximans*, *Circus approximans gouldi*, *Circus gouldi*

## Countries on record

Countries where Catalogue of Life checklists list the species. Many checklists carry no country data, so the list is often incomplete. It is not a range map.

Australia

## Common questions

### How big is the swamp harrier?

An adult swamp harrier weighs 640 g – 870 g and has a wingspan of 1.18 m – 1.45 m, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

### Where does the swamp harrier live?

Catalogue of Life checklists list the swamp harrier for 1 country: Australia. Checklist coverage is uneven, so the true range may be wider.

### Is the swamp harrier endangered?

The swamp harrier is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.

### How long does the swamp harrier live?

The swamp harrier has a recorded lifespan of 17.3 years.

### What kind of animal is the swamp harrier?

The swamp harrier (Circus approximans) belongs to the family Accipitridae in the order Accipitriformes.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), CC0 1.0, E096-269. Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1
- [AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7), CC BY 4.0, v7. Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7
- [Catalogue of Life eXtended Release](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), CC BY 4.0, 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf
- [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org), per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed), 2026-11-11. Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence).
- [Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org), CC0 1.0, 2026-11-11. Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service).
- [Wikipedia (English)](https://en.wikipedia.org), CC BY-SA 4.0, 2026-11-11. Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).

Cite as: Swamp harrier (Circus approximans). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/swamp-harrier