Eagle is the common name for the golden eagle, bald eagle, and other birds of prey in the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. True eagles comprise the genus Aquila. Most of the 68 species of eagles are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just 14 species can be found—two in North America, nine in Central and South America, and three in Australia.
Falcons are birds of prey in the genus Falco, which includes about 40 species. Falcons are widely distributed on all continents of the world except Antarctica, though closely related raptors did occur there in the Eocene.
Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively hunt and feed on other vertebrates. In addition to speed and strength, these predators have keen eyesight for detecting prey from a distance or during flight, strong feet with sharp talons for grasping or killing prey, and powerful, curved beaks for tearing off flesh. Although predatory birds primarily hunt live prey, many species also scavenge and eat carrion.
The Accipitridae is one of the three families within the order Accipitriformes, and is a family of small to large birds of prey with strongly hooked bills and variable morphology based on diet. They feed on a range of prey items from insects to medium-sized mammals, with a number feeding on carrion and a few feeding on fruit. The Accipitridae have a cosmopolitan distribution, being found on all the world's continents and a number of oceanic island groups. Some species are migratory. The family contains 255 species which are divided into 70 genera.
Condor is the common name for two species of New World vultures, each in a monotypic genus. The name derives from the Quechua kuntur. They are the largest flying land birds in the Western Hemisphere.
Cathartidae, known commonly as New World vultures or condors, are a family of birds of prey consisting of seven extant species in five genera. It includes five extant vultures and two extant condors found in warm and temperate areas of the Americas. They are known as "New World" vultures to distinguish them from Old World vultures, with which the Cathartidae does not form a single clade despite the two being similar in appearance and behavior as a result of convergent evolution.
Old World vultures are vultures that are found in the Old World, i.e. the continents of Europe, Asia and Africa, and which belong to the family Accipitridae, which also includes eagles, buzzards, kites, and hawks.
The palm-nut vulture or vulturine fish eagle, is a large bird of prey in the family Accipitridae. It is the only member of the genus Gypohierax.
The Egyptian vulture, also called the white scavenger vulture or pharaoh's chicken, is a small Old World vulture in the monotypic genus Neophron. It is widely distributed from the Iberian Peninsula, North Africa, West Asia and India. The contrasting underwing pattern and wedge-shaped tail make it distinctive in flight as it soars in thermals during the warmer parts of the day. Egyptian vultures feed mainly on carrion but are opportunistic and will prey on small mammals, birds, and reptiles. They also feed on the eggs of other birds, breaking larger ones by tossing a large pebble onto them.
The turkey vulture is the most widespread of the New World vultures. One of three species in the genus Cathartes of the family Cathartidae, the turkey vulture ranges from southern Canada to the southernmost tip of South America. It inhabits a variety of open and semi-open areas, including subtropical forests, shrublands, pastures, and deserts.
Buteo is a genus of medium to fairly large, wide-ranging raptors with a robust body and broad wings. In the Old World, members of this genus are called "buzzards", but "hawk" is used in the New World. As both terms are ambiguous, buteo is sometimes used instead, for example, by the Peregrine Fund.
The Accipitriformes are an order of birds that includes most of the diurnal birds of prey, including hawks, eagles, vultures, and kites, but not falcons.
Aegypiinae is one of two subfamilies of Accipitridae that are referred to as Old World vultures, the other being the Gypaetinae. They are not closely related to the Gypaetinae, and are instead thought to be the sister group to the serpent-eagles (Circaetinae).
The Buteoninae are a subfamily of birds of prey which consists of medium to large, broad-winged species.
The raptor subfamily Perninae includes a number of medium-sized broad-winged species. These are birds of warmer climates, although the Pernis species have a more extensive range.
A sea eagle or fish eagle is any of the birds of prey in the subfamily Haliaeetinae of the bird of prey family Accipitridae. Ten extant species exist, currently described with this label.
Spizaetus is the typical hawk-eagle birds of prey genus found in the tropics of the Americas. It was however used to indicate a group of tropical eagles that included species occurring in southern and southeastern Asia and one representative of this genus in the rainforests of West Africa. The Old World species have been separated into the genus Nisaetus. Several species have a prominent head crest. These are medium to large-sized raptors, most being between 55 and 75 cm long, and tend to be long-tailed and slender.
Aquila bullockensis is an extinct species of large true eagles in the family Accipitridae. A. bullockensis is related to the living species A. audax to which it might be ancestral. The species is solely known from the distal end of a right humerus found in the Middle Miocene, Bullock Creek deposits in Australia. A. bullockensis is the oldest confirmed record of the genus Aquila in Australia, and possibly in the world.
Neogyps is an extinct monotypic genus of Old World vulture. Despite being an "Old World" vulture taxonomically, it was native to the New World, with its fossils having been found in western North America, including in the La Brea Tar Pits of southern California, dating to the Late Pleistocene. Several morphological characters suggest that Neogyps is closely related to the subfamily Gypaetinae.
Neophrontops is an extinct genus of Old World vulture. Despite being taxonomically an "Old World" vulture, specifically a member of the subfamily Gypaetinae, it was native to North America, with six species having been named, spanning from the Early Miocene to the Late Pleistocene. All except N. americanus are only known from fragmentary remains, though well preserved remains are known from the late Middle-Late Pleistocene aged La Brea Tar Pits of Southern California.
