Difference between revisions of "Hawk" - New World Encyclopedia

From New World Encyclopedia
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*** [[Grey-backed Hawk]], ''Leucopternis occidentalis''  
 
*** [[Grey-backed Hawk]], ''Leucopternis occidentalis''  
 
*** [[Mantled Hawk]], ''Leucopternis polionota''
 
*** [[Mantled Hawk]], ''Leucopternis polionota''
 +
**'''Genus ''Buteo'' '''
 +
*** [[Common Buzzard]], ''Buteo buteo''
 +
** [[Cape Verde Buzzard]], ''Buteo buteo bannermani''
 +
** [[Madeira Buzzard]], ''Buteo buteo harterti''
 +
** [[Socotra Buzzard]], ''Buteo buteo socotrae''
 +
** [[Steppe Buzzard]], ''Buteo buteo vulpinus''
 +
*** [[Red-tailed Hawk]], ''Buteo jamaicensis''
 +
*** [[Long-legged Buzzard]], ''Buteo rufinus''
 +
*** [[Rough-legged Buzzard]], ''Buteo lagopus''
 +
*** [[Ferruginous Hawk]], ''Buteo regalis''
 +
*** [[Red-shouldered Hawk]], ''Buteo lineatus''
 +
*** [[Broad-winged Hawk]], ''Buteo platypterus''
 +
*** [[Swainson's Hawk]], ''Buteo swainsoni''
 +
*** [[Roadside Hawk]], ''Buteo magnirostris''
 +
*** [[Ridgway's Hawk]], ''Buteo ridgwayi''
 +
*** [[White-rumped Hawk]], ''Buteo leucorrhous''
 +
*** [[Short-tailed Hawk]], ''Buteo brachyurus''
 +
*** [[White-throated Hawk]], ''Buteo albigula''
 +
*** [[White-tailed Hawk]], ''Buteo albicaudatus''
 +
*** [[Galápagos Hawk]], ''Buteo galapagoensis''
 +
*** [[Red-backed Hawk]], ''Buteo polyosoma''
 +
*** [[Puna Hawk]], ''Buteo poecilochrous''
 +
***[[Grey-lined Hawk]], ''Buteo nitidus'' - formerly in ''Asturina''
 +
**** Grey Hawk, ''Buteo nitidus plagiatus''
 +
*** [[Zone-tailed Hawk]], ''Buteo albonotatus''
 +
*** [[Hawaiian Hawk]], ''Buteo solitarius''
 +
*** [[Rufous-tailed Hawk]], ''Buteo ventralis''
 +
*** [[Mountain Buzzard]], ''Buteo oreophilus''
 +
*** [[Madagascar Buzzard]], ''Buteo brachypterus''
 +
*** [[Upland Buzzard]], ''Buteo hemilasius''
 +
*** [[Red-necked Buzzard]], ''Buteo auguralis''
 +
*** [[Jackal Buzzard]], ''Buteo rufofuscus''
 +
**** Archer's Buzzard, ''Buteo (rufofuscus) archeri''
 +
**** Augur Buzzard, ''Buteo (rufofuscus) augur''
  
 
== Hawks and humans ==
 
== Hawks and humans ==

Revision as of 22:56, 1 October 2008

Hawks
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Scientific classification
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order: Accipitriformes
Family: Accipitridae
Subfamily: Accipitrinae
Genera
  • Accipiter
  • Micronisus
  • Melierax
  • Urotriorchis
  • Erythrotriorchis

The term hawk can be used in several ways:

  • In strict usage in Europe and Asia, to mean any of the species in the subfamily Accipitrinae in the genera Accipiter, Micronisus, Melierax, Urotriorchis and Megatriorchis. The large and widespread Accipiter genus includes goshawks, sparrowhawks , the Sharp-shinned Hawk and others. These are mainly woodland birds with long tails and high visual acuity, hunting by sudden dashes from a concealed perch.
  • More generally (especially in North America) to mean falcons or small to medium-sized members of the Accipitridae - the family which includes the "true hawks" (Accipiters) as well as eagles, kites, harriers and buzzards.
  • Loosely, to mean almost any bird of prey outside of the order Strigiformes (owls).

The common names of birds in various parts of the world often use hawk in the second sense. For example, the Osprey or "fish hawk"; or, in North America, the various Buteo species (e.g., the Red-tailed Hawk, B. jamaicensis).

'Buteo (Etymology: Buteo is the Latin name of the Common Buzzard) is a genus of medium-sized wide-ranging raptors with a robust body and broad wings. In the Old World, members of this genus are called "buzzards", but "hawk" is used in North America. As both terms are ambiguous, buteo is sometimes used instead, e.g., by the Peregrine Fund.[1]* Red-tailed Hawk, Buteo jamaicensis

  • Red-shouldered Hawk, Buteo lineatus
  • Broad-winged Hawk, Buteo platypterus
  • Swainson's Hawk, Buteo swainsoni
  • Roadside Hawk, Buteo magnirostris
  • Ridgway's Hawk, Buteo ridgwayi


Eagle is the common name for various diurnal birds of prey in the family Accipitridae of the bird order Falconiformes, characterized by large size, powerful hooked beaks, strong legs and feet with great curved, sharp talons, keen vision, long broad wings and strong soaring flight, and fully feathered, often crested heads. In particular, members of the genus Aquila are known as "true eagles,"

In February 2005, Canadian ornithologist Louis Lefebvre announced a method of measuring avian "IQ" in terms of their innovation in feeding habits.[2] Hawks were named among the most intelligent birds based on his scale.

Hawks are widely reputed to have visual acuity several times that of a normal human being. This is due to the many photoreceptors in the retina (up to 1,000,000 per square mm for Buteo, against 200,000 for humans), an exceptional number of nerves connecting these receptors to the brain, and an indented fovea, which magnifies the central portion of the visual field.

Overview and description

Accipitridae family

The Accipitridae family, to which eagles belong, is one of the two major families within the order Falconiformes (the diurnal birds of prey). In addition to eagles, many well-known birds, such as hawks, kites, harriers, and Old World vultures are included in this group. Most other raptors, but not all, belong to the Falconidae, or falcon family. Accripitrids differ from members of the other raptorial family in several skeletal features, as well as having well-developed nest-building behavior (versus poor or absent), forceful squirting of excreta (versus dropping of excreta), and yellow, red, or hazel eyes (versus brown)(Olsen 2004).

File:Harpy Eagle2.JPG
The powerful harpy eagle can easily grab a monkey weighing 5 kilograms and fly away with it.

The accipitrids have been variously divided into some 5 to 10 subfamilies. Most of them share a very similar morphology, but many of these groups contain taxa that are more aberrant. These are placed in their respective position more for lack of better evidence than anything else. It is thus not very surprising that the phylogenetic layout of the accipitrids has always been a matter of dispute.

The Accipitridae are a diverse family with a great deal of variation in size and shape. They range in size from the tiny pearl kite, which is 25 centimeters in length and weighs no more than 100 grams, to the Philippine eagle, which is 1 meter in length and which may weight up to 7 kilograms (Thiollay 1994).

The beaks of accipitrids are strong, hooked (sometimes very hooked, as in the hook-billed kite or snail kite). In all accipitrids, the base of the upper mandible is covered by a fleshy membrane called the cere, which is usually yellow in color. The tarsi of different species vary by diet, those of bird hunting species like sparrowhawks are long and thin, while species that hunt large mammals have much thicker, stronger ones, and snake-eagle have thick scales to protect from bites.

Accipitrinae

The Accipitrinae is the subfamily of the Accipitridae often known as the "true" hawks, including all members of Accipiter and the closely related genera Melierax, Urotriorchis, Erythrotriorchis and Megatriorchis. The large and widespread genus Accipiter includes goshawks, sparrowhawks, the Sharp-shinned Hawk and others. They are primarily woodland birds that hunt by sudden dashes from a concealed perch, with long tails, broad wings and high visual acuity facilitating this lifestyle. In light of recent genetic research, the kites of the traditional subfamily Milvinae may also belong to this group.

Hawks, including the accipitrines, are believed to have vision several times as sharp as that of the human species, in part because of the great number of photoreceptors in their retinas (up to 1,000,000 per square mm, against 200,000 for humans), a very high number of nerves connecting the receptors to the brain, and an indented fovea, which magnifies the central portion of the visual field.

Hawks

Species list

This list is in taxonomic order to show the relationships between species.

  • Subfamily Accipitrinae
    • Genus Accipiter
      • Northern Goshawk, A. gentilis
      • Eurasian Sparrowhawk, A. nisus
      • Grey-bellied Goshawk, A. poliogaster
      • Crested Goshawk, A. trivirgatus
      • Sulawesi Goshawk, A. griseiceps
      • Red-chested Goshawk, A. toussenelii
      • African Goshawk, A. tachiro
      • Chinese Goshawk, A. soloensis
      • Frances's Sparrowhawk, A. francesii
      • Spot-tailed Goshawk, A. trinotatus
      • Grey Goshawk, A. novaehollandiae
      • Brown Goshawk, A. fasciatus
      • Pied Goshawk, A. albogularis
      • Fiji Goshawk, A. rufitorques
      • White-bellied Goshawk, A. haplochrous
      • Moluccan Goshawk, A. henicogrammus
      • Grey-headed Goshawk, A. poliocephalus
      • New Britain Goshawk, A. princeps
      • Henst's Goshawk, A. henstii
      • Meyer's Goshawk, A. meyerianus
      • Black Goshawk, A. melanoleucus
      • Chestnut-flanked Sparrowhawk, A. castanilius
      • Nicobar Sparrowhawk, A. butleri
      • Levant Sparrowhawk, A. brevipes
      • Slaty-mantled Sparrowhawk, A. luteoschistaceus
      • Imitator Sparrowhawk, A. imitator
      • Red-thighed Sparrowhawk, A. erythropus
      • Little Sparrowhawk, A. minullus
      • Japanese Sparrowhawk, A. gularis
      • Small Sparrowhawk, A. nanus
      • Rufous-necked Sparrowhawk, A. erythrauchen
      • Collared Sparrowhawk, A. cirrocephalus
      • New Britain Sparrowhawk, A. brachyurus
      • Vinous-breasted Sparrowhawk, A. rhodogaster
      • Madagascar Sparrowhawk, A. madagascariensis
      • Ovampo Sparrowhawk, A. ovampensis
      • Rufous-chested Sparrowhawk, A. rufiventris
      • Shikra, A. badius
      • Tiny Hawk, A. superciliosus
      • Semicollared Hawk, A. collaris
      • Sharp-shinned Hawk, A. striatus
      • White-breasted Hawk, A. chionogaster
      • Plain-breasted Hawk, A. ventralis
      • Rufous-thighed Hawk, A. erythronemius
      • Cooper's Hawk, A. cooperii
      • Gundlach's Hawk, A. gundlachi
      • Bicoloured Hawk, A. bicolor
      • Besra, A. virgatus
    • Genus Melierax
      • Gabar Goshawk, M. gabar
      • Dark Chanting Goshawk, M. metabates
      • Eastern Chanting Goshawk, M. poliopterus
      • Pale Chanting Goshawk, M. canorus
    • Genus Urotriorchis
      • Long-tailed Hawk, U. macrourus
    • Genus Erythrotriorchis
      • Red Goshawk, E. radiatus
      • Chestnut-shouldered Goshawk, E. buergersi
    • Genus Megatriorchis
      • Doria's Goshawk, M. doriae
  • Subfamily Buteoninae
    • Genus Parabuteo
      • Harris's Hawk, P. unicinctus
    • Genus Buteogallus
      • Common Black Hawk, Buteogallus anthracinus
      • Mangrove Black Hawk, Buteogallus subtilis
      • Great Black Hawk, Buteogallus urubitinga
      • Rufous crab Hawk, Buteogallus aequinoctialis
      • Savanna Hawk, Buteogallus meridionalis
    • Genus Busarellus
      • Black-collared Hawk, Busarellus nigricollis
    • Genus Leucopternis
      • Plumbeous Hawk, Leucopternis plumbea
      • Slate-coloured Hawk, Leucopternis schistacea
      • Barred Hawk, Leucopternis princeps
      • Black-faced Hawk, Leucopternis melanops
      • White-browed Hawk, Leucopternis kuhli
      • White-necked Hawk, Leucopternis lacernulata
      • Semiplumbeous Hawk, Leucopternis semiplumbea
      • White Hawk, Leucopternis albicollis
      • Grey-backed Hawk, Leucopternis occidentalis
      • Mantled Hawk, Leucopternis polionota
    • Genus Buteo
      • Common Buzzard, Buteo buteo
    • Cape Verde Buzzard, Buteo buteo bannermani
    • Madeira Buzzard, Buteo buteo harterti
    • Socotra Buzzard, Buteo buteo socotrae
    • Steppe Buzzard, Buteo buteo vulpinus
      • Red-tailed Hawk, Buteo jamaicensis
      • Long-legged Buzzard, Buteo rufinus
      • Rough-legged Buzzard, Buteo lagopus
      • Ferruginous Hawk, Buteo regalis
      • Red-shouldered Hawk, Buteo lineatus
      • Broad-winged Hawk, Buteo platypterus
      • Swainson's Hawk, Buteo swainsoni
      • Roadside Hawk, Buteo magnirostris
      • Ridgway's Hawk, Buteo ridgwayi
      • White-rumped Hawk, Buteo leucorrhous
      • Short-tailed Hawk, Buteo brachyurus
      • White-throated Hawk, Buteo albigula
      • White-tailed Hawk, Buteo albicaudatus
      • Galápagos Hawk, Buteo galapagoensis
      • Red-backed Hawk, Buteo polyosoma
      • Puna Hawk, Buteo poecilochrous
      • Grey-lined Hawk, Buteo nitidus - formerly in Asturina
        • Grey Hawk, Buteo nitidus plagiatus
      • Zone-tailed Hawk, Buteo albonotatus
      • Hawaiian Hawk, Buteo solitarius
      • Rufous-tailed Hawk, Buteo ventralis
      • Mountain Buzzard, Buteo oreophilus
      • Madagascar Buzzard, Buteo brachypterus
      • Upland Buzzard, Buteo hemilasius
      • Red-necked Buzzard, Buteo auguralis
      • Jackal Buzzard, Buteo rufofuscus
        • Archer's Buzzard, Buteo (rufofuscus) archeri
        • Augur Buzzard, Buteo (rufofuscus) augur

Hawks and humans

  • Hawks are sometimes used in falconry, a sport in which trained hawks, eagles or falcons, are used to pursue and catch small game.
  • In the US, hawks are sometimes shot for sport or by ranchers who believe the birds may depredate livestock. This makes hawk conservation an issue in some areas. In other parts of the world, most hawk species are protected by law

References
ISBN links support NWE through referral fees

  • Olsen, P. 2004. Accipitridae. In B. Grzimek, D. G. Kleiman, V. Geist, and M. C. McDade, Grzimek's Animal Life Encyclopedia. Detroit: Thomson-Gale. ISBN 0307394913.
  • Thiollay, J. M. 1994. Family Accipitridae (Hawks and Eagles). In J. del Hoyo, A. Elliot, and J. Sargatal, eds. Handbook of the Birds of the World, Volume 2: New World Vultures to Guineafowl. Lynx Edicions. ISBN 8487334156.

External links

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