Tuesday, 9 December 2025

Short-tailed Hawk (Buteo brachyurus)

OTHER NAMES: N/A
Latin Etymology: Buteo ("buzzard") brachyurus ("short-tailed")

Adult Light Morph Short-tailed Hawk (Buteo brachyurus) (subspecies ) at Tarcoles, Costa Rica - November 2025 

Featured Subspecies: Buteo brachyurus fulgigunosus
Weight: 385-480g  /  Length: 40cm  /  Wingspan: 83-103cm
NO UK STATUS IUCN Red List: Least Concern

A widely distributed but scarce hawk that unusually for a buteo primarily hunts birds, although they will also take preys such as reptiles, amphibians, small mammals and insects as needed. Like many other buteos they come in a wide range of morphs, ranging from ones with pure white undersides to entirely dark birds. Unusually for a buteo, they tend to perch in more difficult to obscerve locations from the ground as they do not hunt from perches.
 
Related Species: 
Order: Accipitriformes
Family: Accipitridae
Genus: Buteo
SUBSPECIES: B. b. brachyurus, B. b. fulgigunosus
 
- Sighting Locations -

COSTA RICA - Spanish - Gavilán Rabicorto ("Short-tailed Hawk")
Uncommon but found throughout except at the highest altitudes
- COSTA RICA 2025 TRIP: Seen at Tarcoles

Further Notes: BirdForum Opus, IUCN Red List, RSPB, Wikipedia, Xeno-canto

No comments:

Post a Comment