Spizaetus
Spizaetus is the typical hawk-eagle birds of prey genus found in the tropics of the Americas. It was however used to indicate a group of tropical eagles that included species occurring in southern and southeastern Asia and one representative of this genus in the rainforests of West Africa. The Old World species have been separated into the genus Nisaetus. Several species have a prominent head crest. These are medium to large-sized raptors, most being between 55 and 75 cm (21.5 and 29.5 in) long, and tend to be long-tailed and slender.
| Spizaetus | |
|---|---|
| Black hawk-eagle (Spizaetus tyrannus) | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Domain: | Eukaryota |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Accipitriformes |
| Family: | Accipitridae |
| Subfamily: | Aquilinae |
| Genus: | Spizaetus Vieillot, 1816 |
| Type species | |
| Falco ornatus Daudin, 1800 | |
| Species | |
|
and see text | |
| Synonyms | |
The American Ornithologists' Union merges Spizastur into Spizaetus since 2007.
Spizaetus eagles are forest birds with several species having a preference for highland woodlands. They build stick nests in trees. The sexes are similarly plumaged with typical raptor brown upperparts and pale underparts, but young birds are distinguishable from adults, often by a whiter head.
These eagles eat medium-sized vertebrate prey such as mammals, birds and reptiles.
The species that were historically placed in this genus are:
New World species retained in Spizaetus
| Image | Scientific name | Common Name | Distribution |
|---|---|---|---|
| Spizaetus tyrannus | Black hawk-eagle or tyrant hawk-eagle | central Mexico to eastern Peru, the south of Brazil, and far northern Argentina | |
| Spizaetus melanoleucus | Black-and-white hawk-eagle, traditionally Spizastur | Oaxaca to Veracruz in southern Mexico southwards throughout Central America | |
| Spizaetus ornatus | Ornate hawk-eagle | southern Mexico and the Yucatán Peninsula, to Trinidad and Tobago, south to Peru and Argentina | |
| Spizaetus isidori | Black-and-chestnut eagle | Northern Andes (including Venezuelan coastal range and Sierra Nevada de Santa Marta) | |
Old World species now moved to Nisaetus
- Flores hawk-eagle Nisaetus floris (earlier Spizaetus cirrhatus floris or Spizaetus floris)
- Mountain hawk-eagle, Nisaetus nipalensis (earlier Spizaetus nipalensis)
- The Western Ghats and Sri Lankan race has been suggested as a full species Nisaetus kelaarti.
- Blyth's hawk-eagle, Nisaetus alboniger (earlier Spizaetus alboniger)
- Changeable hawk-eagle, Nisaetus cirrhatus (earlier Spizaetus cirrhatus)
- Javan hawk-eagle, Nisaetus bartelsi (earlier Spizaetus bartelsi)
- Sulawesi hawk-eagle, Nisaetus lanceolatus (earlier Spizaetus lanceolatus)
- (Northern) Philippine hawk-eagle, Nisaetus philippensis (earlier Spizaetus philippensis)
- Southern Philippine hawk-eagle, Nisaetus pinskeri (earlier Spizaetus (philippensis) pinskeri)
- Wallace's hawk-eagle, Nisaetus nanus (earlier Spizaetus nanus)
Moved to Aquila
- Cassin's hawk-eagle, Aquila africana (earlier Spizaetus africanus)