Black-chested Buzzard Eagle Ecuador

URBAN BIRDS OF THE PARKS, GARDENS, AND SOURROUNDING AREAS OF the City of Loja ECUADOR. BOOK PUBLISHED IN 2009, WITH 44 COMMON SPECIES. ILLUSTRATED BY PABLO ANDRADE. WORK SUPPORTED BY JAN HINLOOPEN.

Distribution.

Mostly at 2000 and 3000 m.

An impresive large raptor found in semiopen terrain in highlands, regular up into paramo.

In Loja is found ocassionaly on sunny days soaring around the city, more often in the Argelia park and Podocarpus National Park.

Black-chested Buzzard Eagle

Description.

62 – 68,5 cm (24,5-27″).

Black-chested Buzzard Eagle Ecuador. Iris brown to amber; cere and base of bill pale yellow; legs yellow. Adult nearly unmistikable, with strikingly short wedge-shaped tail that barely protrudes past tail in flight. Upperparts as well as throat slaty gray, becoming black on chest; lower underparts contrastingly white with fine wavy dusky barring. Shoulders pale gray vermiculated black; tail gray, essentially unmarked. In flight wings long and broad, especially towards base; underwing-coverts whitish, flight feathers grayer. Inmature dusky brown above, without gray shoulders; whitish to buff below , heavily streaked brown, and often with belly contrastingly dark; tail considerably longer than in adult (imparting a more “normal” silhouette).

Habits.

A powerful bird of prey that takes mostly small mammals. In Ecuador most often seen in flight, regularly in pairs, gliding effortlessly along cliffs and ridges on flat or slightly raised wings. Usually perches on rocks or ground. Birds of Loja City . Black chested Buzzard Eagle.

Voice.

Not very vocal, but occasionally flying birds give a surprisingly high-pitched (weak for size of bird), broken ” Ku-ke-u” and faster more singing “kukukukuku”..

Information taken from the book Birds Of Ecuador of Robert Ridgely and Paul Greenfield.