The hook-billed kite (Chondrohierax uncinatus), is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as kites, eagles, and harriers. It occurs in the Americas, including the Rio Grande Valley of Texas in the United States, Mexico, the Caribbean, Central America, and tropical South America.
| Hook-billed kite | |
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| Hook-billed kite in Pasco, Peru | |
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Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Chordata |
| Class: | Aves |
| Order: | Accipitriformes |
| Family: | Accipitridae |
| Genus: | Chondrohierax |
| Species: | C. uncinatus |
| Binomial name | |
| Chondrohierax uncinatus (Temminck, 1822) | |
| Subspecies[2] | |
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Description
editIt is a mid-sized, slender raptor with a large hooked bill. There is extreme variation in bill size and plumage.[3] Birds from beneath can look blackish or gray (especially males) and brown or brick-red (females) variously. This renders species identification at times extremely difficult. The downcurved hook at the tip of the beak is apparent on perched and low-flying birds. Weight can range from 215 to 397 g (7.6 to 14.0 oz) and length is 38–42 cm (15–16.5 in).[4][3]
Ecology
editTree snails (e.g. Bulimulus, Homolanyx, and Polymita) are a vital component of the hook-billed kite's diet.[5][6] The density of their population within a region is proportional to the presence of tree snails. It has also been observed that the beak of the hook-billed kite has adapted in size and shape between different regions of their territory in response to the species of tree snail available to them.[7] However, terrestrial snails (e.g. Strophocheilus), aquatic snails (e.g. Pomacea), frogs, salamanders, lizards, small mammals, crabs, spiders, caterpillars, and insects are also taken.[8][9][10] It supposedly also hunts other birds, but this seems unlikely.[11] When it finds a tree snail it holds it with its talon and uses its beak to pry open the shell.
Breeding
edit1–2 eggs are laid in the shallow and small nest. Incubation time of around 35 days, both parents incubate.[12]
Taxonomy
editThe critically endangered Cuban kite (C. wilsonii) is considered by some authors to be a subspecies of the hook-billed kite.
References
edit- ↑ BirdLife International (2020). "Chondrohierax uncinatus". IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. 2020 e.T22694971A168997614. doi:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T22694971A168997614.en. Retrieved 11 November 2021.
- ↑ Gill F, D Donsker & P Rasmussen (Eds). 2020. IOC World Bird List (v10.2). doi : 10.14344/IOC.ML.10.2.
- 1 2 Hoyo, Josep del; Bierregaard, Richard, eds. (1994), Handbook of the birds of the world. 2: New world vultures to guineafowl / Josep del Hoyo ... [ed.]. Richard Bierregaard, Barcelona: Lynx Ed, ISBN 978-84-87334-15-3
- ↑ Corporation, Marshall Cavendish (2001). Endangered Wildlife and Plants of the World. Marshall Cavendish. ISBN 978-0-7614-7194-3.
- ↑ Ferguson-Lees, J. & Christie, D.A. & Franklin, K. & Mead, D. & Burton, P.. (2001). Raptors of the world. Helm Identification Guides.
- ↑ "Birds of the World: Hook-billed jite". 31 August 2014.
- ↑ Dunne, Pete (2012). Hawks in flight: the flight identification of North American raptors (2nd ed.). Boston: Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. p. 301. ISBN 978-0-395-70959-7.
- ↑ "Hook-billed Kite | the Peregrine Fund".
- ↑ Ferguson-Lees, J. & Christie, D.A. & Franklin, K. & Mead, D. & Burton, P.. (2001). Raptors of the world. Helm Identification Guides.
- ↑ "Chondrohierax uncinatus (Hook-billed Kite" (PDF). uwi.edu. Retrieved 2 March 2024.
- ↑ Ferguson-Lees, J. & Christie, D.A. & Franklin, K. & Mead, D. & Burton, P.. (2001). Raptors of the world. Helm Identification Guides.
- ↑ Hoyo, Josep del; Bierregaard, Richard, eds. (1994), Handbook of the birds of the world. 2: New world vultures to guineafowl / Josep del Hoyo ... [ed.]. Richard Bierregaard, Barcelona: Lynx Ed, ISBN 978-84-87334-15-3
External links
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- Stamps for Cuba, Honduras; (includes RangeMap)
- Associação Mãe-da-lua Hook-billed Kite