birding-aus

What is a hawk?

To: "'Peter Shute'" <>, <>
Subject: What is a hawk?
From: "Philip Veerman" <>
Date: Thu, 13 Jan 2011 13:32:07 +1100
I would say yes to your question. As to list all the group names in a
title would be too long. Also raises the aspect (and I'm not expert on
this) that the Red Goshawk, Black-breasted Buzzard and Square-tailed
Kite are probably more closely related to each other and not actually
closely related to real goshawks, buzzards and kites. They are probably
convergent with those groups. (And that is even ignoring for now that
Americans use the word "buzzard" for new world vultures (that are closer
related to storks) and use the word "hawk" for buzzards (Buteo).

The only other point is that sea-eagles are regarded as over grown kites
(and thus hawks), rather that true eagles. I don't know the exact
diagnosis of why that is the case other than that true eagles have fully
feathered legs and sea-eagles don't but there probably are more
technical anatomical and chemical reasons than that. 

Philip

-----Original Message-----
From: 
 On Behalf Of Peter Shute
Sent: Thursday, 13 January 2011 8:27 AM
To: 
Subject: What's a hawk?


I'm reading "Eagles, Hawks and Falcons" by David Hollands, and I'm
wondering about the title. It covers all Australian diurnal raptors, but
he doesn't specify which species he has classified as an eagle, a hawk,
or a falcon, or even discuss the matter.

If "falcons" covers the family Falconidae, and "eagles" covers Little
and Wedge-tailed Eagles, and White-bellied Sea-Eagle, does that mean
everything else is a hawk?

Peter Shute

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