Falconine Birds

Falconinae

Bill short, stout, cerate; upper mandible with the tip elongated and decurved; lower mandible rounded and thin-edged at the end. Head rather large, broadly ovate, feathered. Eyes large, with prominent superciliary ridges. External aperture of ears of moderate size, and simple. Tarsus longer than the middle toe; claws very large, much curved, extremely acute. Plumage full and generally compact. Wings very long and broad: OEsophagus excessively wide and dilated into a crop; stomach large, somewhat membranous, its muscular fasciculi being placed in a single series; intestine short and rather wide, or very long and slender; coeca extremely small. The young, when fledged, generally having the lower parts longitudinally streaked. Eggs from two to six, ovate, or roundish. Nest on trees, rocks, or the ground.

Genus I : Buzzard

Common Buzzard
Plate 372

Genus II : Caracara

Brasilian Caracara Eagle
Plate 161

Genus III : Eagle

Golden Eagle
Plate 181

Genus IV : Falcon

Iceland, or Jer Falcon
Plate 366
Great-footed Hawk
Plate 16
Pigeon Hawk
Plate 92
American Sparrow Hawk
Plate 142

Genus V : Harrier

Marsh Hawk
Plate 356

Genus VI : Hawk

Goshawk and Stanley Hawk
Plate 141
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Plate 374

Genus VII : Ictinia

Mississippi Kite
Plate 117

Genus VIII : Osprey

Fish Hawk, or Osprey
Plate 81

Genus IX : Sea-Eagle

White-headed Eagle
Plate 31

Genus X : Swallow-Tailed Hawk

Swallow-tailed Hawk
Plate 72

About This Guide

High-resolution images courtesy of the John James Audubon Center at Mill Grove, Audubon, PA, and the Montgomery County, PA, Audubon Collection. Learn more about the John James Audubon Center