Forest falcons are members of the

genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...

''Micrastur'', part of the family

Falconidae The falcons and caracaras are around 65 species of Diurnality, diurnal birds of prey that make up the family Falconidae (representing all extant species in the order (biology), order Falconiformes). The family likely originated in South America d ...

. They are

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found only in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also foun ...

to the

Americas The Americas, sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North America and South America.''Webster's New World College Dictionary'', 2010 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio. When viewed as a sing ...

, found from

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

in the north, south through

Central America Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...

and large parts of

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

, and as far south as northern

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

. Most are restricted to humid tropical and subtropical forests, but the two most widespread species, the collared and the

barred forest falcon The barred forest falcon (''Micrastur ruficollis'') is a species of bird of prey in subfamily Herpetotherinae of family Falconidae, the falcons and caracaras. It occurs from southern Mexico south through most of Central America and in every m ...

, also range into drier and more open habitats. Forest falcons, like most ''

Accipiter ''Accipiter'' () is a genus of birds of prey in the family Accipitridae. Some species are called sparrowhawks, but there are many sparrowhawks in other genera such as '' Tachyspiza''. These birds are slender with short, broad, rounded wings and ...

''-type hawks (but unlike other falcons), are adapted for agility in thick cover rather than outright speed in the open air. They have short wings, long tails, and extraordinarily acute hearing. While generally visually inconspicuous, their songs are commonly heard. Their diet is a mixture of birds, mammals, and reptiles. Hunting is often performed in

goshawk Goshawk may refer to several species of birds of prey in the family Accipitridae: Palearctic * Eurasian goshawk, ''Astur gentilis'', often referred to simply as the goshawk, since it is the only goshawk found in much of its range (in Europe and ...

fashion: the bird takes up a perch in an inconspicuous position and waits for a prey species to pass, then strikes with a short, rapid pursuit. Forest falcons are inventive, flexible hunters, and at least some species (such as the relatively long-legged collared forest falcon) are also capable of catching terrestrial prey on foot. In 2002, a new species was described, found in the Atlantic forest and the southeastern

Amazon Amazon most often refers to: * Amazon River, in South America * Amazon rainforest, a rainforest covering most of the Amazon basin * Amazon (company), an American multinational technology company * Amazons, a tribe of female warriors in Greek myth ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

(and later also confirmed for adjacent parts of

Bolivia Bolivia, officially the Plurinational State of Bolivia, is a landlocked country located in central South America. The country features diverse geography, including vast Amazonian plains, tropical lowlands, mountains, the Gran Chaco Province, w ...

). It has been named ''Micrastur mintoni'', the cryptic forest falcon, as it is phenotypically highly similar to ''M. gilvicollis''.

Species

Taxonomy and systematics

''Micrastur'' was defined by George Robert Gray in the second edition of his ''List of the Genera of Birds'' in 1841. O
page 4 of the first edition
he lists "* !———–? Brachypterus ''Less''." The type species was Temminck's ''Falco brachypterus'', with Illiger's ''Falco concentricus'' as a synonym. Composition of species comprising the genus has varied, with differing opinions on whether particular populations are species or subspecies, and whether collected specimens were different life stages or plumage variants of the same species. Sclater and Salvin commented in 1869 that "some of the members of the genus ''Micrastur'' are at present in a state of great confusion". They listed seven species, of which four are currently recognised and three are considered subspecies. In 1873, Robert Ridgway noted the similarity of ''Micrastur'' to the laughing falcon ''Herpetotheres''. He wrote that "Eight species are given in Gray’s Hand List…, but of this number only five are tenable."

References

{{Taxonbar, from=Q579064 Polyborinae Falcons Birds of prey * Taxa named by George Robert Gray