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To the Beauty of Birds

The Common Black Hawk (Buteogallus anthracinus) is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes the eagles, hawks, and Old World vultures. It formerly included the Cuban black hawk (Buteogallus gundlachii) as a subspecies. The mangrove black hawk, traditionally considered a distinct species, is now generally considered a subspecies, B. a. subtilis, of the common black hawk.

The adult common black hawk is 43–53 cm (17–21 in) long and weighs 930 g (33 oz) on average. It has very broad wings, and is mainly black or dark gray. The short tail is black with a single broad white band and a white tip. The bill is black and the legs and cere are yellow. The adults resemble zone-tailed hawks, but have fewer white bars on their tail and are larger in size.

Sexes are similar, but immature birds are dark brown above with spotting and streaks. Their underparts are buff to whitish with dark blotches, and the tail has a number of black and white bars.

The bird builds a platform nest of sticks fifteen to one hundred feet above the ground in a tree, often a mangrove. Nests are often reused and tend to grow bigger. It lays one to three eggs (usually one), which are whitish with brown markings.

It feeds mainly on crabs, but will also take small vertebrates and eggs. This species is often seen soaring, with occasional lazy flaps, and has a talon-touching aerial courtship display. The call is a distinctive piping spink-speenk-speenk-spink-spink-spink.

Photo 2245 were taken at the Audubon Florida Center for Birds of Prey, Orlando. The 3450 photo was taken in Hautulco, Mexico. The 400 series of photos were taken in Trinidad.

Common Black Hawk

Common Black Hawk 2245

Common Black Hawk juvenile 3450

Common Black Hawk-414

Common Black Hawk-435

Common Black Hawk-456

Common Black Hawk-459

Common Black Hawk-465

Common Black Hawk-412