The rufous-tailed hawk (''Buteo ventralis'') is a species of

bird of prey Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and other smaller birds). In addition to speed and strength, these predat ...

in the family

Accipitridae The Accipitridae is one of the three families within the order Accipitriformes, and is a family of small to large birds with strongly hooked bills and variable morphology based on diet. They feed on a range of prey items from insects to medium-s ...

. The rufous-tailed hawk is found in southern

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest ...

and

Chile Chile, officially the Republic of Chile, is a country in the western part of South America. It is the southernmost country in the world, and the closest to Antarctica, occupying a long and narrow strip of land between the Andes to the eas ...

, including the entire region of

Tierra del Fuego Tierra del Fuego (, ; Spanish for "Land of the Fire", rarely also Fireland in English) is an archipelago off the southernmost tip of the South American mainland, across the Strait of Magellan. The archipelago consists of the main island, Isla ...

. Its natural

habitat In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...

s are temperate

forest A forest is an area of land dominated by trees. Hundreds of definitions of forest are used throughout the world, incorporating factors such as tree density, tree height, land use, legal standing, and ecological function. The United Nations' ...

s, subtropical or tropical dry

shrubland Shrubland, scrubland, scrub, brush, or bush is a plant community characterized by vegetation dominated by shrubs, often also including grasses, herbs, and geophytes. Shrubland may either occur naturally or be the result of human activity. It ...

, subtropical or tropical high-altitude shrubland, and temperate

grassland A grassland is an area where the vegetation is dominated by grasses ( Poaceae). However, sedge ( Cyperaceae) and rush ( Juncaceae) can also be found along with variable proportions of legumes, like clover, and other herbs. Grasslands occur na ...

Description

The rufous-tailed hawk is similar to the

red-tailed hawk The red-tailed hawk (''Buteo jamaicensis'') is a bird of prey that breeds throughout most of North America, from the interior of Alaska and northern Canada to as far south as Panama and the West Indies. It is one of the most common members wit ...

. It was first recorded by Charles Darwin in Patagonia while on his voyage of the ''Beagle''. The rufous-tailed hawk is a medium-sized hawk with a wing span of 45–60 cm. The overall size range of the hawk is 54–60 cm. There are two different colorations of the rufous-tailed hawk. The more common pale version of the hawk has a blackish brown upper parts, with a darker cap and cinnamon feathers along the side of the head and neck. The belly is white with dark markings and reddish brown coloration on it.Ferguson-Lees, J. and Christie, D.A. (2001) ''Raptors of the World: An Identification Guide to the Birds of Prey of the World''. Houghton Mifflin, New York. The dark version is basically all black with whitish edging on the feathers. The call of the rufous-tailed hawk sounds like ''kee-ahrr''.

Habitat

The rufous-tailed hawk has been spotted living in a number of different habitat types, including evergreen beech forest, mature forest and new growth forest that have been burned over, and finally in open country. The best theory for their ideal habitat was developed by Figueroa et al. (2000),Figueroa, R., J.E. Jiménez, C.E. Bravo, E.S. Corales. 2000. The diet of the Hawk (''Buteo ventralis'') during the breeding season in southern Chile. ''Ornitologia Neotropical'' Trejo et al. (2006), and Rivas et al. (2009), who all suggested that rufous-tailed hawks' ideal habitat is somewhere with high trees near open areas that are good for hunting for prey. So far, there have been no reports of the rufous-tailed hawk living in human areas like cities or abandoned buildings.

Feeding

The rufous-tailed hawk feeds on a large variety of prey. They feed on everything from other birds to mammals and reptiles. This shows that rufous-tailed hawks have a very broad diet that is similar to the red-tailed hawk. Figueroa et al. (2000) reported the rufous-tailed hawk feeding on southern lapwing, Norwegian rat, European hare, red-breasted meadowlark, Chilean flicker, short-tailed snake, and even a few unidentified beetles. Feeding or prey capture was also recorded to happen in forest and in parries.

Breeding

Rufous-tailed hawks have a longer recorded nestling period compared to other species of ''Buteo''.Norambuena, H. V., V. Raimilla, and J. E. Jimenez. 2012. Breeding behavior of a pair of Rufous-tailed Hawks (''Buteo ventralis'') in southern Chile. ''Journal of Raptor Research'' 46:211-215. Rufous-tailed and red-tailed hawks have around the same nestling periods: around 49 days for rufous-tailed hawks compared to 45–46 days for red-tailed hawks. The egg clutch size of a rufous-tailed hawk has only been reported to between 1-3 eggs in a nest.Rivas-Fuenzalida, T., J. Medel, and R. A. Figueroa. 2011. Reproducción del aguilucho colarojiza (''Buteo ventralis'') en remanentes de bosque lluvioso templado de la Araucanía, sur de Chile. ''Ornitología Neotropical'' 22:405–420

Threats

Rufous-tailed hawks are threatened by many factors, especially habitat loss. Rufous-tailed hawks have been losing their habitat because of logging, over grazing by sheep and cattle, and the growth of ''Pinus'' and ''Eucalyptus'' plantations. ''Pinus radiata'' and ''Eucalyptus globulus'' are fast-growing invasive plants that were introduced in order to spur the timber industry in Chile. The other main threat to rufous-tailed hawks are local people, who sometimes kill these birds because rufous-tailed hawks attack and eat their domesticated animals.

Population estimates

Ferguson-Lees and Christie (2001) estimated the population size to be around 100 individuals. In 2001, the IUCN ranked them at only "low risk". They were only listed as "vulnerable" in 2015 because the IUCN estimated the population to be around 299-999 mature individuals and a total of around 375-1499 individuals. If the total number of individuals drops lower than 1000, then they will be designated as "endangered" by the IUCN. But a more accurate and current population estimate is still need to get a better understanding of what danger the rufous-tailed hawk is truly in.

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q1262855 Buteo Birds of Argentina Birds of Chile Birds of Tierra del Fuego Birds of Patagonia Birds described in 1837 Taxonomy articles created by Polbot Taxa named by John Gould