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Birds of Zihuatanejo

CLASS AVES

-Animals (Kingdom Animalia)

-Chordates (Phylum Chordata)

-Vertebrates (Subphylum Vertebrata)

-Birds (Class Aves)

-Hawks, Eagles, Kites, and Allies (Order Accipitriformes)

-Hawks, Eagles, and Kites (Family Accipitridae)

-Buteonine Hawks, Kites, and Allies (Subfamily Buteoninae)

-Buteos (Genus Buteo)

-Short-tailed Hawk (Buteo brachyurus)


Resident in tropical and subtropical Mexico south to Brazil and Argentina. In Mexico they usually occur as light morphs with brown upperparts and neat white underparts. These hawks hunt on high for birds, stooping down on them in sudden dives and picking them right off their perches, but they will also occasionally feed on rodents, small snakes, lizards, frogs, and large insects. Typically found in edge habitat where large open expanses of grassland, wetland, or farmland meet forests.

Short-tailed Hawk

Buteo brachyurus

Diet

  • Primarily small birds, which it captures in flight or from surprise attacks.

  • Also feeds on lizards, snakes, frogs, rodents, bats, and large insects.

  • Hunts mainly by soaring high overhead before making swift dives on prey below.

Range

  • Found from southern Florida through Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean, and much of South America to northern Argentina.

  • In Mexico, it occurs primarily along the Pacific and Gulf slopes, including the Zihuatanejo region, where it is an uncommon but regular resident.

  • Inhabits tropical and subtropical forests, forest edges, foothills, woodlands, and open country with scattered trees.

  • Generally a year-round resident throughout most of its range.

Male / Female

  • Male: Occurs in both light and dark morphs; slightly smaller and lighter than the female.

  • Female: Similar in plumage to the male but noticeably larger and heavier.

  • Sexes cannot be reliably distinguished in the field by plumage alone; size is the primary difference.

  • Both sexes may occur in either colour morph, so plumage colour does not indicate sex.

Size

  • Length: 39–44 cm (15–17 in)

  • Wingspan: 83–103 cm (33–41 in)

  • Weight:

    • Male: 340–500 g

    • Female: 450–700 g

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