Caracara (subfamily)

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Caracara
Mountain caracara.jpg
Mountain caracara
Phalcoboenus megalopterus
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Phylum:
Class:
Order:
Family:
Subfamily:
Polyborinae or Caracarinae
Genera
Crested caracara, Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge Caracara on Post by Dan Pancamo.jpg
Crested caracara, Brazoria National Wildlife Refuge
Crested caracara (C. plancus) in flight Southern crested caracara (Caracara plancus) in flight.JPG
Crested caracara (C. plancus) in flight

Caracaras are birds of prey in the family Falconidae. They are traditionally placed in subfamily Polyborinae with the forest falcons, [1] but are sometimes considered to constitute their own subfamily, Caracarinae, [2] or classified as members of the true falcon subfamily, Falconinae. [3] Caracaras are principally birds of South and Central America, just reaching the southern United States.

Contents

Unlike the Falco falcons in the same family, the birds in the five relevant genera are not fast-flying aerial hunters, but are comparatively slow and are often scavengers (a notable exception being the red-throated caracara).

Species

ImageGenusLiving Species
Black Caracara - Chupacacao Negro (Daptrius ater) (14909975447) (cropped).jpg DaptriusVieillot, 1816
Ibycter americanus - journal.pone.0084114.g001A.png IbycterVieillot, 1816
Carunculated Caracara JCB.jpg Phalcoboenus d'Orbigny, 1834
Caracara cheriway -Brevard Zoo-8a.jpg Caracara Merrem, 1826
Gelbkopfkarakara Milvago chimachima.jpg Milvago Spix, 1824

Distribution

The caracaras are found throughout much of the Americas. The range of the crested caracara extends as far north as the states of Arizona, Texas, and Florida in the United States. [4] In the Southern Hemisphere, the striated caracara inhabits the Falkland Islands and Tierra del Fuego, just off the coast of the southernmost tip of South America. [5]

Taxonomy

The genus Caracara Merrem 1826 was previously known as Polyborus Vieillot 1816. Hence, the differing subfamily names Polyborinae or Caracarinae. In addition, different authors give differing scopes to the subfamily, sometimes including the forest falcons, laughing falcon, or spot-winged falconet.

Peters' checklist [6] in 1931 listed the caracaras in their own subfamily, Polyborinae, containing Daptrius, Milvago, Phalcobœnus, and Polyborus. Ibycter americanus is included as Daptrius americanus.

Whilst recognizing "three major, deep divisions in the Falconidae", [7] the South American Classification Committee (SACC) of the American Ornithologists' Union voted [8] in 2007 to recognize two subfamilies: Herpetotherinae containing the forest falcons; and Falconinae containing the caracaras and true falcons.

Based on recent research in molecular genetics, [9] John Boyd [10] places the spot-winged falconet (Spiziapteryx) in Caracarinae, and the forest falcons in Herpetotherinae. He also comments that "many of the caracaras are closely related, and it would not be unreasonable to merge Ibycter, Milvago, and Phalcoboenus into Daptrius".

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Falconidae</span> Family of birds

The falcons and caracaras are around 65 species of diurnal birds of prey that make up the family Falconidae. The family is divided into three subfamilies: Herpetotherinae, which includes the laughing falcon and forest falcons; Polyborinae, which includes the spot-winged falconet and the caracaras; and Falconinae, the falcons and kestrels (Falco) and falconets (Microhierax).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laughing falcon</span> Species of bird

The laughing falcon is a medium-sized bird of prey in subfamily Herpetotherinae of family Falconidae, the falcons and caracaras. It is found from Mexico south through Central America and in every mainland South American country except Chile and Uruguay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Yellow-headed caracara</span> Species of bird

The yellow-headed caracara is a bird of prey in the family Falconidae, the falcons and caracaras. It is found in Nicaragua, Costa Rica, Panama, every mainland South American country except Chile, and on Aruba, Bonaire, Curaçao, and Trinidad and Tobago.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Striated caracara</span> Species of bird

The striated caracara or Forster's caracara is a Near Threatened bird of prey of the family Falconidae, the falcons and caracaras. It is found in Argentina, Chile, and the Falkland Islands. In the Falklands it is known as the Johnny rook, probably named after the Johnny penguin.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crested caracara</span> Species of bird

The crested caracara, also known as the Mexican eagle, is a bird of prey in the family Falconidae. It is found throughout Central and South America but has been found in northern Minnesota to Tierra del Fuego. It was formerly placed in the genus Polyborus.

<i>Phalcoboenus</i> Genus of birds

Phalcoboenus is a small genus of caracara in the family Falconidae. They are found in barren, open habitats in the Andes, Patagonia and the Falkland Islands. The four species are almost entirely allopatric. The adults are distinctive, with bare yellow, orange or red facial skin and cere, and a black plumage with variable amounts of white. Juveniles are overall brown with pale pinkish-grey facial skin and cere. They are highly opportunistic and typically seen walking on the ground, where they will feed on carrion and virtually any small animal they can catch.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Black caracara</span> Species of bird

The black caracara is a species of bird of prey in the family Falconidae found in Amazonian and French Guiana lowlands, commonly along rivers. They are locally referred to as Ger' futu busikaka in the Republic of Suriname or juápipi {nẽjõmbʌ} by the Emberá of Panama and Colombia. Both these names refer to multiple bird species within Falconidae. German-Brazilian ornithologist Helmut Sick also referred to this species as gavião-de-anta, literally translating to "tapir-hawk".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Red-throated caracara</span> Species of bird

The red-throated caracara is a social species of bird of prey in the family Falconidae. It is placed in the monotypic genus Ibycter, or sometimes united in Daptrius with the black caracara. Unique among caracaras, it mainly feeds on the larvae of bees and wasps, but also takes the adult insects and fruits and berries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Plumbeous forest falcon</span> Species of bird

The plumbeous forest-falcon is a bird of prey in the family Falconidae only found in the Chocó region in Colombia and Ecuador. This rare bird has not been often spotted, which makes its study complicated. For a long time, it was considered to be part of the lined forest-falcons but it now known to be a species of its own. It is currently considered a vulnerable species because of the precarity of its habitat that is threatened by deforestation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Barred forest falcon</span> Species of bird

The barred forest falcon 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 mainland South American country except Chile and Uruguay.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White-fronted falconet</span> Species of bird

The white-fronted falconet, also called the Bornean falconet, is a species of bird of prey in the family Falconidae. Described by the British ornithologist Richard Bowdler Sharpe in 1879, it is endemic to Borneo, where it is found in Sarawak, Sabah, and extreme northeastern Kalimantan. An extremely small falcon, it is only 14–17 cm (5.5–6.7 in) long and weighs 35–65 g (1.2–2.3 oz), being the smallest species of falconet. It has glossy bluish-black upperparts, black flanks and outer thighs, and a black mask. The belly and vent are pale yellowish-brown, while the throat, cheeks, and breast are white. The species can be told apart from other falconets by the colour of its crown and forehead, which is white in males and reddish-brown in females. It has no subspecies.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pied falconet</span> Species of bird

The pied falconet, is a species of bird of prey in the family Falconidae. It is found in Bangladesh, Bhutan, China, Hong Kong, India, Laos, and Vietnam. Its natural habitat is temperate forests.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chimango caracara</span> Species of bird

The chimango caracara is a species of bird of prey in the family Falconidae, the falcons and caracaras. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, Paraguay, and Uruguay, and as a vagrant on the Falkland Islands.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White-throated caracara</span> Species of bird

The white-throated caracara or Darwin's caracara is a species of bird of prey in the family Falconidae, the falcons and caracaras. It is found in Argentina and Chile.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carunculated caracara</span> Species of bird

The carunculated caracara is a species of bird of prey in the family Falconidae, the falcons and caracaras. It is found in Colombia and Ecuador.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">White-rumped falcon</span> Species of bird

The white-rumped falcon is a species of bird of prey in the family Falconidae native to Indochina. It is placed in its own monotypic genus, Neohierax.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Spot-winged falconet</span> Species of bird

The spot-winged falconet is a species of bird of prey in subfamily Falconinae of family Falconidae, the falcons and caracaras. It is found in Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay, and possibly Uruguay.

<i>Caracara</i> (genus) Genus of birds

Caracara is a genus in the family Falconidae and the subfamily Polyborinae. It contains one extant species, the crested caracara; and one extinct species, the Guadalupe caracara. The South American Classification Committee of the American Ornithological Society has voted to again merge the two, retaining C. plancus as crested caracara. The taxonomists of the International Ornithologists' Union have also merged them.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Herpetotherinae</span> Subfamily of birds

Herpetotherinae is a subfamily of falconid birds of prey that includes eight species in two genera Herpetotheres and Micrastur. Both genera are found in South America and the subfamily is basal to the other falconid subfamilies where they split off around 30.2 million years ago in the Oligocene epoch. The two extant herpetotherine genera split around 20 million years ago in the Miocene epoch with the extinct genus Thegornis.

References

  1. Myers, P. R.; Parr, C. S.; Jones, T.; Hammond, G. S.; Dewey, T. A. "Subfamily Polyborinae (caracaras and forest falcons)". Animal Diversity Web. University of Michigan. Retrieved 2009-08-21.
  2. "Check-list of North American Birds". North American Classification Committee. American Ornithologists' Union. Retrieved 2009-08-21.
  3. "A classification of the bird species of South America". South American Classification Committee. American Ornithologists' Union. Archived from the original on 2009-10-05. Retrieved 2009-08-21.
  4. "Crested Caracara". All About Birds. Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Retrieved 2009-08-21.
  5. Marín, Manuel; Alejandro Kusch; David Oehler; Scott Drieschman (2006). "Distribution, Breeding and Status of the Striated Caracara (Phalcoboenus australis) (Gmelin, 1788) in Southern Chile" (PDF). Anales del Instituto de la Patagonia. 34: 65–74. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2019-04-18. Retrieved 2009-08-21.
  6. Peters, James Lee (1931). "Subfamily Polyborinae". Check-list of birds of the world: volume 1. Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S.A.: Harvard University Press.
  7. South American Classification Committee (8 September 2014). "A Classification of the Bird Species of South America, Part 5 (Trogoniformes to Psittaciformes)" (version 21 ed.). Archived from the original on 2014-02-03. Retrieved 22 September 2014.
  8. Remsen, Van (June 2007). "Proposal (#281) to South American Classification Committee: Classification within Falconidae". Archived from the original on 19 September 2015. Retrieved 22 September 2014.
  9. Fuchs, J.; Johnson, J. A.; Mindell, D. P. (2012). "Molecular systematics of the caracaras and allies (Falconidae: Polyborinae) inferred from mitochondrial and nuclear sequence data". Ibis. 154: 520–532. doi:10.1111/j.1474-919x.2012.01222.x.
  10. Boyd, John H. "Falconiformes". Taxonomy in Flux Checklist. Retrieved 26 September 2014.