Gray-backed Hawk
Pseudastur occidentalis
An endangered raptor found only in western Ecuador and immediately adjacent parts of Peru. It has white underparts, dark gray back and wings, and gray streaks on the head. Its tail is white with a thick black band near the tip that is especially evident in flight. Restricted to areas where extensive forest cover remains. Prefers dry and semi-humid areas; not normally present in the wetter forests of northwestern Ecuador, but may occasionally wander into them.
Identification
The grey-backed hawk is 45 to 52 cm (18 to 20 in) long with a 104 to 116 cm (41 to 46 in) wingspan. One female weighed 660 g (23 oz). Females are about 10% larger than males and both sexes have the same plumage. Adults have a gray and white streaked head, nape, and mantle. They have blackish gray upperparts and a mostly white tail with a wide black band near the end. Their eye is dark brown, their cere gray, and their legs and feet pale yellow. Immatures have brownish gray upperparts, a dusky-striped nape, and gray spots on the breast.
Taxonomy
The grey-backed hawk was traditionally placed in genus Leucopternis but following a 2006 paper, taxonomists moved it and two other species to genus Pseudastur. The grey-backed hawk is monotypic.
- Scientific name
- Pseudastur occidentalis
- Authority
- (Salvin, 1876)
- Order
- Accipitriformes
- Family
- Accipitridae
- Genus
- Pseudastur
Range and habitat
The grey-backed hawk is found locally in western Ecuador between southern Esmeraldas and Loja provinces and slightly into Peru's Department of Tumbes. It inhabits subtropical and tropical semi-deciduous and evergreen forest, cloudforest, and secondary forest. It prefers moist areas and is often found in steep ravines. In elevation it mostly ranges between 100 and 1,400 m (330 and 4,600 ft) but occurs as high as 2,900 m (9,500 ft).
- Migration
- Resident species
Behavior
The grey-backed hawk is sedentary.<p>The grey-backed hawk's hunting method and diet are not well defined. It has been recorded hunting over streams and croplands and sometimes up to four will hunt together. Its diet includes reptiles, amphibians, crabs, rodents, birds, and large insects.<p>The grey-backed hawk appears to nest at any time of the year but its breeding activity appears to be concentrated between December and April, the local rainy season. Pairs make display flights. Nothing else is known about its breeding biology.<p>During the grey-backed hawk's display flights, one bird will make a "drawn-out screeching keeeaaarr-keeeaaarr... (which rises in central portion) or, alternatively, a high-pitched kéééoooowww".
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
Other Birds
Matinan Flycatcher
Eumyias sanfordi
A chunky, drab flycatcher with a heavy hooked bill. Has a gray head with indistinct pale marking around the eye. Warmer olive-brown above with rufous-tinged tail, wings, and rump; underparts pale gray. Juvenile grayish with bold speckling on the chest. Inhabits understory of montane forest. Restricted to northern Sulawesi. Lacks the white belly of female Blue-and-white Flycatcher and the yellow belly of Sulphur-bellied Whistler. Short, melodious song is a burst of jumbled warbling notes that regularly rises and falls in pitch.
Red-legged Seriema
Cariama cristata
Unmistakable large terrestrial raptorial bird. Sandy-colored overall with very long red legs, a long tail, and tufty crest in front of the eyes. Note the strong red bill and large pale eyes with blue eyerings. Strides elegantly through open and lightly wooded savannas but also perches on the top of trees. Usually sings at dawn, an evocative and incredibly loud “kuap-kuap-kuap-kuap” often delivered as a duet for extended periods.
Orange-spotted Bulbul
Pycnonotus bimaculatus
Attractive bulbul of foothill and montane forest edges and clearings. Endemic to Sumatra, Java, and Bali; introduced to Lombok. Brown above and white below, with bright orange patches on the face and a golden-yellowish tinge to the wings and cheeks. Also note the weak crest, which is not always raised. Generally unmistakable in its range; only confusion species is Aceh Bulbul, but note present species’ pale belly and range differences. Often gathers at fruiting trees. Call is a hard, decisive-sounding “tjik”, often given in series. Song is a bubbly series of bright fluid notes, often given with a somewhat hesitant quality.
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