Ornate Hawk-Eagle

About the Ornate Hawk-Eagle

Also known as: Crested Eagle Hawk, Mauduyt's Hawk Eagle

The Ornate Hawk-Eagle is a medium-sized bird of prey that lives in tropical forests in Central and South America.

Ornate Hawk-Eagles are colorful raptors, with blackish upperparts and chestnut coloring around the side of the face and neck. The breast is white with strong black barring. Juveniles looked markedly different, having much more white or grey, especially around the face and neck. All birds have a prominent head crest.

The Ornate Hawk-Eagle is a very powerful bird, strong for its size. They can take prey items up to five times their own weight! They take other birds as prey, primarily.

The Ornate Hawk-Eagle is considered to be Near Threatened. They face habitat loss due to deforestation.

Details & Statistics

Added to Birdorable

Hatched 18 October 2012

Scientific Name

Spizaetus ornatus

Order:

Falconiformes

Family:

Accipitridae

Genus:

Spizaetus

Species:

S. ornatus

Bird Family

Birds of Prey

Conservation Status

Near Threatened (as of 7 April 2020)

Least Concern (LC)
Near Threatened (NT)
Vulnerable (VU)
Endangered (EN)
Critically Endangered (CR)
Extinct in the Wild (EW)
Extinct (EX)

Source: IUCN Red List

Measurements

Length:

1.8 to 2.2 feet

(55.9 to 68.6 cm)

Wingspan:

3.8 to 4.7 feet

(1.2 to 1.4 meters)

Weight:

2.1 to 3.6 pounds

(0.9 to 1.6 kilos)

Range

Central America South America

Conservation

The Ornate Hawk-Eagle is listed as Near Threatened on the IUCN Red List and was last assessed in 2012 by BirdLife International. Based on a model of future deforestation in the Amazon basin, and habitat loss and persecution elsewhere within its extremely large range, it is suspected that the population of this species will decline by 25-30% over the next three generations, and it has therefore been uplisted to Near Threatened.