Crested Goshawk
Lophospiza trivirgata
Powerfully built hawk of forests, especially hilly woods. Namesake crest is usually held low and not very visible. Adult has a gray head, brown wings, whitish underparts with thick orange-brown stripes in belly and streaks in breast, and white throat with black borders. Juvenile similar but with brown head, sparingly marked underparts, and very short crest. Appears stockier and relatively shorter-tailed in flight than other accipiters. Flying adults may also show a fluffy white clump of feathers on both sides of the tail.
Identification
This raptor has short broad wings and a long tail, both adaptations to manoeuvring through trees. It is 30–46 cm in length, with the female much larger than the male. The larger size and a short crest, clearly visible in profile, are the best distinctions from its relative, the besra (A. virgatus).<p>The male has a dark brown crown, grey head sides and black moustachial and throat stripes. The pale underparts are patterned with rufous streaks on the breast and bars on the belly. The larger female has a browner head and brown underpart streaks and bars. The juvenile has pale fringes to its head feathers, and the underpart background colour is buff rather than white.<p>The flight is a characteristic "slow flap, slow flap, straight glide", similar to other Accipiter species such as the northern goshawk (A. gentilis).
Taxonomy
The crested goshawk includes the following recognized subspecies:<p>Phylogenetic studies have found that the Accipiter trivirgatus is not recovered as part of a monophyletic Accipiter and a new genus, Lophospiza, has been proposed for it and the Sulawesi goshawk (A. griseiceps).
- Scientific name
- Lophospiza trivirgata
- Authority
- (Temminck, 1824)
- Order
- Accipitriformes
- Family
- Accipitridae
- Genus
- Lophospiza
Range and habitat
- Migration
- Resident species
Conservation
- Population trend
- declining
Photos
Distribution
Bird Calls
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