Common Buzzard vs Rough-Legged Buzzard

Buteo buteo compared with Buteo lagopus

Key Differences

• Common Buzzard is Least Concern while Rough-Legged Buzzard is Near Threatened.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	Common Buzzard	Rough-Legged Buzzard
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class same	Aves (Birds)	Aves (Birds)
Order same	Accipitriformes (Hawks & Eagles)	Accipitriformes (Hawks & Eagles)
Family same	Accipitridae (Hawks & Eagles)	Accipitridae (Hawks & Eagles)
Genus same	Buteo	Buteo
Species	Buteo buteo	Buteo lagopus

Evolutionary Relationship

Common Buzzard and Rough-Legged Buzzard share a common ancestor at the Genus level: Buteo.

Conservation Status

Common Buzzard

LC — Least Concern

Rough-Legged Buzzard

NT — Near Threatened

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	Common Buzzard	Rough-Legged Buzzard
Diet	—	—
Average Lifespan	—	—
Average Length	—	—
Average Weight	—	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

Common Buzzard

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Distributed across Belgium, Denmark, Norway, Russia, and Sweden.

Rough-Legged Buzzard

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Found across Europe (5 countries) and North America (United States). Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

Common Buzzard

Common Buzzard (Buteo buteo) is classified as Least Concern (LC) on the IUCN Red List. Widespread and abundant across its range, with stable populations and no immediate conservation concerns.

Rough-Legged Buzzard

Rough-Legged Buzzard (Buteo lagopus) is classified as Near Threatened (NT) on the IUCN Red List. Close to qualifying as threatened, with populations that may become vulnerable without conservation action.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 5 countries:

🇧🇪 Belgium 🇩🇰 Denmark 🇳🇴 Norway 🇷🇺 Russia 🇸🇪 Sweden