Rufous Crab Hawk

Buteogallus aequinoctialis (Gmelin, JF, 1788)

Rufous Crab Hawk, Buteogallus aequinoctialis, is a bird of prey in the Accipitridae family that breeds along the coast of South America from coastal Venezuela to coastal north-east Brazil. It also occurs on Trinidad. It is a mangrove bird, though it is found in swamps, wet savanna and river edges close to the sea. Adults have sooty black head, throat and neck, a dark rufous back, rufous underparts with fine dark barring, and a black tail with a white tip and narrow white band. The species was described by Gmelin in 1788.

Order

Accipitriformes

Family

Accipitridae — Kites, Hawks, Eagles

Breeding range

South America: coastal Venezuela to coastal ne Brazil