Solitary Eagle

About the Solitary Eagle

The solitary eagle or montane solitary eagle (Buteogallus solitarius) is a large Neotropical eagle. It is also known as the black solitary eagle. The solitary eagle is native to Mexico and Central and South America. It is found in mountainous or hilly forests, at elevations between 600 m and 2,200 m. The frequent reports from lowlands are usually misidentifications of another species, usually the common black hawk or great black hawk; no reports from lowlands have been confirmed. It is rare that in all areas of its range and poorly known. Very little is known about its diet, other than that it appears to have often been predating large snakes and one adult pair was seen hunting deer fawns. The remains of a chachalaca were noted in one nest.

The adult solitary eagle is uniformly dark gray, often appearing black, with white markings on the tail. It is 63 to 79 cm (25 to 31 in) and has a 152 to 188 cm (5 ft 0 in to 6 ft 2 in) wingspan. With a body mass of approximately 3 kg (6.6 lb), it appears to rival its similarly-weighted sister species, the Chaco eagle, as one of the larger living members of the Buteoninae subfamily, although the black... Wikipedia →