Bird Guide

Common Black Hawk vs Savanna Hawk

Common Black Hawk (Buteogallus anthracinus)

Common Black Hawk

Buteogallus anthracinus

Large975 gWoodland

The adult common black-hawk is 43–53 cm (17–21 in) long and weighs 930 g (33 oz) on average. It has very broad wings, and is mainly black or dark gray. The short tail is black with a single broad white band and a white tip. The bill is black and the legs and cere are yellow. The adults resemble zone-tailed hawks, but have fewer white bars on their tail and are larger in size. Sexes are similar, but immature birds are dark brown above with spotting and streaks. Their underparts are buff to whitish with dark blotches, and the tail has a number of black and white bars.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Recording: Gean Carlo Valdés · CC0
Photo: Fabrício Mil Homens Riella · CC BY 4.0
Savanna Hawk (Buteogallus meridionalis)

Savanna Hawk

Buteogallus meridionalis

Large808 gGrassland

The savanna hawk is 46–61 cm (18–24 in) in length and weighs 845 g (29.8 oz). The adult has a rufous body with grey mottling above and fine black barring below. The flight feathers of the long broad wings are black, and the tail is banded black and white. The legs are yellow. The call is a loud scream keeeeru. Immature birds are similar to the adults but have darker, duller upperparts, paler underparts with coarser barring, and a whitish supercilium. This species perches very vertically, and its legs are strikingly long.

ID text from Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Photo: Darren Obbard · CC BY 4.0

Where you might meet both

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Photos and recordings are credited to their authors under the licence shown. Full profiles: Common Black Hawk and Savanna Hawk.