Nearctica - Natural History - Birds of Eastern North America - Accipitridae

Hawks and Eagles

Accipitridae

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A Field Guide to Eastern Birds. by Roger Tory Peterson.

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The family Accipitridae is a large, worldwide family containing the Hawks, Eagles, Harriers, Ospreys, and Kites. The birds range in size from pigeon-sized to the grand eagles. All species have a characteristic sleek and formidable look. This family along with the vultures, falcons, and owls are generally lumped together as raptors or birds of prey, although the owls are not related. All members of the family are predaceous, hunting for small mammals, other birds, and herps. One species (the Snail Kite) feeds almost exclusively on tree snails. There is no easy, full-proof method of separating hawks from the related falcons (Falconidae) . Falcons tend to have long tails and sharply pointed wings.

There are 240 species of the family worldwide. Twenty-four species are known to breed in North America.

Identify from thumbnails

Alphabetical by Common Name

American Swallow-tailed Kite (Elamoides forficatus)

Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)

Broad-winged Hawk (Buteo platypterus)

Cooper's Hawk (Accipiter cooperii)

Everglades Kite (see Snail Kite)

Ferruginous Hawk (Buteo regalis)

Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos)

Marsh Hawk (see Northern Harrier)

Mississippi Kite (Ictinia mississippiensis)

Northern Goshawk (Accipiter gentilis)

Northern Harrier (Circus cyaneus)

Osprey (Pandion haliaetus)

Red-shouldered Hawk (Buteo lineatus)

Red-tailed Hawk (Buteo jamaicensis)

Rough-legged Hawk (Buteo lagopus)

Sharp-shinned Hawk (Accipiter striatus)

Short-tailed Hawk (Buteo brachyurus)

Snail Kite (Rostrhamus sociabilis)

Swainson's Hawk (Buteo swainsoni)

Alphabetical by Genus and Species