White-necked Hawk
Buteogallus lacernulatus
Medium-sized pied hawk of dense Atlantic Forest. Note yellow bill base, white head and belly, and black back. Tail is white with a black sub-terminal band. Can be confused with Mantled Hawk which is larger and lacks the dark terminal tail band. Juveniles have dark streaks on the crown.
Identification
The white-necked hawk is 43 to 48 cm (17 to 19 in) long with a 91 to 101 cm (36 to 40 in) wingspan. Males and females have the same plumage, though females are about 4% larger than males. Adults have a white head and underparts and black upperparts. Their tail is black with a wide white band in the middle. Their eye is brown or pale yellow and their legs and feed yellow. Immatures are similar to adults but with dark streaks on their crown and neck, brown tips on some upperparts feathers, and white barring on the black base of their tail.
Taxonomy
The white-necked hawk was for a time placed in genus Leucopternis but molecular studies placed it in Buteogallus. A 2009 paper proposed the new monotypic genus Amadonastur for it but this treatment has not been accepted by worldwide taxonomic systems. The white-necked hawk is monotypic.
- Scientific name
- Buteogallus lacernulatus
- Authority
- (Temminck, 1827)
- Order
- Accipitriformes
- Family
- Accipitridae
- Genus
- Buteogallus
Range and habitat
The white-necked hawk is found discontinuously in southeastern Brazil from Paraíba south to Paraná state; it might previously have occurred further south in Santa Catarina state. It mostly inhabits dense primary Atlantic Forest but has been recorded in secondary forest. In elevation it generally ranges from sea level to at least 900 m (3,000 ft) and locally to 1,300 m (4,300 ft) in Minas Gerais.
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
Migration pattern: Resident species.
Conservation
Population trend: declining.
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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