Great Black Hawk - BirdForum Opus

Adult, nominate subspecies
Photo © by Joseph Morlan
Rio Amazonas, Iquitos, Peru, 9 June 2019

Buteogallus urubitinga

Identification

Juvenile, nominate subspecies
Photo © by Dave B Smith
Tobago, 20 March 2011

51–64 cm (20-25 in)

• Black overall plumage
• White on the base and the tip of the tail
• White rump
• Yellow legs and cere (latter greyish in Central America).
• May have barred tibials/thighs (esp. Central America)
• Longer tail than Common Black Hawk but shorter primary projection

Variations

Extent of white on tail and color of lores is variable; subspecies ridgwayi has two white bands on the tail, of which the upper is narrow and often concealed, and slaty lores. This subspecies also often shows some white barring on thighs.

Similar species

Compare with Common Black Hawk and the rare Solitary Eagle

Distribution

Central and South America: found from Mexico to Bolivia, Argentina, and Uruguay.

Taxonomy

Subspecies

There are two subspecies^[1]:

• B. u. ridgwayi:

• Lowlands of northern Mexico to western Panama

• B. u. urubitinga:

• Eastern Panama through South America to northern Argentina

Habitat

Habitats from open country to forest but is normally to be seen near water.

Behaviour

Juvenile, nominate subspecies
Photo © by Rogerio Araújo Dias
Brasília, Brazil, 24 August 2006

Breeding

Nests mostly in rainy season. The stick nest is usually placed in a tree or sometimes on a man-made structure. Clutch of one, rarely two white eggs with brown spots.

Diet

A wide variety of prey, including birds, rodents, land crabs, frogs and fish. They are also known to eat fruit. Have been observed feeding in the company of caracaras and vultures.

=Vocalisations

Common call is a long drawn-out high-pitched scream, very unlike the laughing call of Common Black Hawk.

Movements

Mostly sedentary; individuals of northern race may wander into Chocó of Colombia with at least one stray juvenile north to Maine, USA.

Gallery

Click on photo for larger image

• 

  Adult, subspecies urubitinga
  Photo © by Stanley Jones
  Puerto Jofre, Mato Grosso, Brazil, 5 August 2015

• 

  Adult, subspecies ridgwayi
  Photo © by Friesen Gerald Friesen
  Yucatan, Mexico, 10 February 2018

References

1. Clements, J. F., T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, D. Roberson, T. A. Fredericks, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2018. The eBird/Clements checklist of birds of the world: v2018. Downloaded from http://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
2. Bierregaard, R.O., Jr, Boesman, P. & Kirwan, G.M. (2019). Great Black Hawk (Buteogallus urubitinga). In: del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A., Sargatal, J., Christie, D.A. & de Juana, E. (eds.). Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive. Lynx Edicions, Barcelona. (retrieved from https://www.hbw.com/node/53113 on 3 July 2019).
3. Global Raptor Information Network. 2019. Species account: Great Black Hawk Buteogallus urubitinga. Downloaded from http://www.globalraptors.org on 2 Jul. 2019
4. van Dort, J. (2019). Great Black Hawk (Buteogallus urubitinga), version 1.0. In Neotropical Birds Online (T. S. Schulenberg, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/nb.grbhaw1.01
5. Identification of the black hawks (Buteogallus)

• List of references

Recommended Citation

• BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Great Black Hawk. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 31 October 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Great_Black_Hawk

External Links

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