Ricardo Kuehn
Harpy Eagle (Harpia harpyja)
Harpy Eagle (Harpia harpyja)
Status: Conservation dependent
Population Trend: Declining.
Other Names: Thrasaetus harpyia
Distribution: Neotropical. Southern MEXICO (formerly north to Veracruz, but now probably only in Chiapas) south locally through Caribbean Central America to COLOMBIA east to VENEZUELA and the GUIANAS and south through eastern BOLIVIA and BRAZIL to extreme northeastern ARGENTINA (Misiones); formerly in western COLOMBIA and western ECUADOR, but nearly extirpated in that region.
Movements: Locally migratory or nomadic in Brazil (Sick 1993), but apparently not in other areas (Venezuela, Panama).
Habitat and Habits: Lowlands and foothills. Generally gallery rainforest, but can also survive in isolated patches of forest and late second-growth where it is not persecuted. Seldom soars over the canopy or over open spaces. Not particularly wary, but nevertheless very inconspicuous, despite its great size.
Food and Feeding Behavior: Sloths, monkeys, agoutis, armadillos, deer, large birds (including guans, curassows, and macaws), large lizards, and snakes. Hunts from a perch in the canopy. sometimes at the edge of a river, or makes short flights from tree to tree with surprising agility, looking (and listening) for prey. In Brazil, it has attacked dogs, chickens, lambs, and kids (goats), but there are no reports of them pursuing children, despite the fears of some rural people (Sick 1993).
Breeding: Nest is a huge platform of sticks with a shallow central cup, placed in a high crotch of a huge emergent tree (often Ceiba) in forest. Eggs 1-2, white, usually with brownish nest stains. Only one eaglet survives to fledge.
Conservation: Endangered (perhaps Critically Endangered) in Mexico and Central America, where it has been extirpated in most of its former range. Vulnerable in most of South American portion of range. Collar et al. (1992, 1994) and BirdLife International categorized this species as Near Threatened. Generally rare everywhere in inhabited areas, but sometimes common away from human settlements in the Amazonian region. Trophy shooting of birds is a chronic problem throughout its range, particularly on the periphery of its range, where such persecution is often a by-blow of deforestation. Indeed, most records of its occurrence are based on birds that were shot for one reason or another. The capture of birds (particularly juveniles) for pets or curiosities is also a pervasive problem.
Source: www.globalraptors.org/grin/SpeciesResults.asp?specID=8040
Harpy Eagle (Harpia harpyja)
Harpy Eagle (Harpia harpyja)
Status: Conservation dependent
Population Trend: Declining.
Other Names: Thrasaetus harpyia
Distribution: Neotropical. Southern MEXICO (formerly north to Veracruz, but now probably only in Chiapas) south locally through Caribbean Central America to COLOMBIA east to VENEZUELA and the GUIANAS and south through eastern BOLIVIA and BRAZIL to extreme northeastern ARGENTINA (Misiones); formerly in western COLOMBIA and western ECUADOR, but nearly extirpated in that region.
Movements: Locally migratory or nomadic in Brazil (Sick 1993), but apparently not in other areas (Venezuela, Panama).
Habitat and Habits: Lowlands and foothills. Generally gallery rainforest, but can also survive in isolated patches of forest and late second-growth where it is not persecuted. Seldom soars over the canopy or over open spaces. Not particularly wary, but nevertheless very inconspicuous, despite its great size.
Food and Feeding Behavior: Sloths, monkeys, agoutis, armadillos, deer, large birds (including guans, curassows, and macaws), large lizards, and snakes. Hunts from a perch in the canopy. sometimes at the edge of a river, or makes short flights from tree to tree with surprising agility, looking (and listening) for prey. In Brazil, it has attacked dogs, chickens, lambs, and kids (goats), but there are no reports of them pursuing children, despite the fears of some rural people (Sick 1993).
Breeding: Nest is a huge platform of sticks with a shallow central cup, placed in a high crotch of a huge emergent tree (often Ceiba) in forest. Eggs 1-2, white, usually with brownish nest stains. Only one eaglet survives to fledge.
Conservation: Endangered (perhaps Critically Endangered) in Mexico and Central America, where it has been extirpated in most of its former range. Vulnerable in most of South American portion of range. Collar et al. (1992, 1994) and BirdLife International categorized this species as Near Threatened. Generally rare everywhere in inhabited areas, but sometimes common away from human settlements in the Amazonian region. Trophy shooting of birds is a chronic problem throughout its range, particularly on the periphery of its range, where such persecution is often a by-blow of deforestation. Indeed, most records of its occurrence are based on birds that were shot for one reason or another. The capture of birds (particularly juveniles) for pets or curiosities is also a pervasive problem.
Source: www.globalraptors.org/grin/SpeciesResults.asp?specID=8040