Ingo Hentschel
New member
Raptors costa rica,
Just joined your forum today, specifically to try to find help identifying a special bird I have been seeing lately.
In Guanacaste province, Nicoya Peninsula, Playa Coyote/Playa San Miguel in tropical coastal dry forest and mangroves I have recently seen several times a large black raptor, bigger than the mangrove black hawk by about 1/3, with a very distinct bright white band on the wings near the wingtips, with black wing tips. Also a bright white tail. I am quite certain it had a golden beak and feet, similar to the mangrove black hawk, but the white wing bands and the size set it apart. Beautiful soaring bird, also nice flyer off the ground, with strong, easy wing beats, long, somewhat shaped/tapered wings. Saw where it was sitting on a sand bank in the mangrove estuary, followed the tracks to where it pushed in hard to leap into flight. Distance back talon to middle talon 110 mm, distance back talon to side talons 90mm. The prints looked much bigger than hawk prints.
I have been guiding kayak tours in the mangroves for 12 years, and I have never seen this bird before, and I don't see this great bird in the guide books. I have sen lots of mangrove black hawks, some crested caracara, yellow caracara, osprey, roadside hawks, and I think once a Swainson's hawk, but never this hawk or eagle, all black except for bright white wing bands and tail.
Any ideas????
Just joined your forum today, specifically to try to find help identifying a special bird I have been seeing lately.
In Guanacaste province, Nicoya Peninsula, Playa Coyote/Playa San Miguel in tropical coastal dry forest and mangroves I have recently seen several times a large black raptor, bigger than the mangrove black hawk by about 1/3, with a very distinct bright white band on the wings near the wingtips, with black wing tips. Also a bright white tail. I am quite certain it had a golden beak and feet, similar to the mangrove black hawk, but the white wing bands and the size set it apart. Beautiful soaring bird, also nice flyer off the ground, with strong, easy wing beats, long, somewhat shaped/tapered wings. Saw where it was sitting on a sand bank in the mangrove estuary, followed the tracks to where it pushed in hard to leap into flight. Distance back talon to middle talon 110 mm, distance back talon to side talons 90mm. The prints looked much bigger than hawk prints.
I have been guiding kayak tours in the mangroves for 12 years, and I have never seen this bird before, and I don't see this great bird in the guide books. I have sen lots of mangrove black hawks, some crested caracara, yellow caracara, osprey, roadside hawks, and I think once a Swainson's hawk, but never this hawk or eagle, all black except for bright white wing bands and tail.
Any ideas????
