Short-tailed Hawk

Buteo brachyurus

Least ConcernNear ThreatenedVulnerableEndangeredCritically Endangered

KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
PhylumChordata (Chordates)
ClassAves (Birds)
OrderAccipitriformes (Hawks, Eagles, Kites, and Allies)
FamilyAccipitridae (Hawks, Eagles, and Kites)
GenusButeo (Buteos)
SpeciesButeo brachyurus (Short-tailed Hawk)

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

at Saguaro National Park

2 Verified sightings at Saguaro National Park From 2019 to 2026

10,751 Verified sightings across all 87 parks From 2019 to 2026

☀️ Diurnal When it's spotted during daytime hours (6am–6pm)

About the Short-tailed Hawk

The short-tailed hawk (Buteo brachyurus) is an American bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes the eagles and Old World vultures. As a member of the genus Buteo, it is not a true hawk and thus also referred to as a "buteo" or (outside North America) "buzzard". The white-throated hawk (B. albigula) is a close relative and was formerly included in the species B. brachyurus.

Short-tailed hawks breed in the tropical and subtropical Americas from southeastern Brazil and northern Argentina north through Central America to the mountains of the Mexico-Arizona border area, as well as in southern Florida, United States; it is also found on the Caribbean island of Trinidad. This species is generally found below 4,500 ft (1,400 m) ASL and most common below 2,500 ft (760 m). It is replaced by the white-throated hawk (B. albigula) in the Andes of southern Colombia and south to central Argentina and Chile; the short-tailed hawk is found in the Cordillera Central and Cordillera Occidental of Colombia, while B. albigula occurs south of these locales. As far as is known, B. brachyurus is a year-round resident except that most of the Florida population migrates in winter... Wikipedia →

Closest Relatives at Saguaro National Park

LC Endemic

Buteo jamaicensis

Daily sighting probability ~30% · Possible

Buteo lineatus

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Buteo nitidus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Buteo albonotatus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Buteo swainsoni

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Buteo platypterus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Buteo regalis

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

Haliaeetus leucocephalus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Parabuteo unicinctus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Circus cyaneus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

LC Endemic

Accipiter striatus

Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare

Elanus leucurus

Daily sighting probability Insufficient data

See all 12 relatives Show fewer

Global Distribution

Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.

where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there

Parks Where Found

#	Park	Country	Daily sighting probability
1	Brownsberg Nature Park	🇸🇷 Suriname	~30%
2	El Triunfo	🇲🇽 Mexico	~20%
3	Everglades National Park	🇺🇸 United States	~10%
4	San Lorenzo Protected Forest	🇵🇦 Panama	~10%
5	Parque Natural Metropolitano	🇵🇦 Panama	~10%
6	Cerro Azul Meámbar National Park	🇭🇳 Honduras	~10%
7	Soberanía National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	~10%
8	Montes Azules Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	~10%
9	Cusuco National Park	🇭🇳 Honduras	~10%
10	Darién National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	~10%
11	Iguaçu National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	~10%
12	La Amistad International Park (Panama)	🇵🇦 Panama	~10%
13	Canaima National Park	🇻🇪 Venezuela	~10%
14	Caroni Swamp	🇹🇹 Trinidad and Tobago	~10%
15	Palo Verde National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~10%
16	Irazú Volcano National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~10%
17	Lago de Yojoa	🇭🇳 Honduras	~10%
18	Arenal Volcano National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~10%
19	Cañón del Sumidero National Park	🇲🇽 Mexico	~10%
20	Chagres National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	~10%
21	Iguazú National Park	🇦🇷 Argentina	~10%
22	Bastimentos Island National Marine Park	🇵🇦 Panama	~10%
23	Tayrona National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	~10%
24	Poás Volcano National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~10%
25	Chirripó National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~10%
26	Big Cypress National Preserve	🇺🇸 United States	~10%
27	Piedras Blancas National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	~10%
28	Itatiaia National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	~10%
29	Tapantí-Macizo de la Muerte National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
30	Ría Lagartos Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	<5%
31	Cordillera Azul National Park	🇵🇪 Peru	<5%
32	Biotopo Cerro Cahuí	🇬🇹 Guatemala	<5%
33	Cahuita National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
34	Pico Bonito National Park	🇭🇳 Honduras	<5%
35	Tenorio Volcano National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
36	Carara National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
37	Cockscomb Basin Wildlife Sanctuary	🇧🇿 Belize	<5%
38	Braulio Carrillo National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
39	Tikal National Park	🇬🇹 Guatemala	<5%
40	Amboró National Park	🇧🇴 Bolivia	<5%
41	Manuel Antonio National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
42	Cabo Blanco Absolute Nature Reserve	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
43	Santa Rosa National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
44	Arrecifes de Cozumel National Park	🇲🇽 Mexico	<5%
45	Anavilhanas National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	<5%
46	Gandoca-Manzanillo Wildlife Refuge	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
47	Volcán Barú National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	<5%
48	Coiba National Park	🇵🇦 Panama	<5%
49	Farallones de Cali National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	<5%
50	Corcovado National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
51	Chapada dos Guimarães National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	<5%
52	Tijuca National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	<5%
53	Calakmul Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	<5%
54	Serra da Canastra National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	<5%
55	Amacayacu National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	<5%
56	Rincón de la Vieja National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
57	Yasuní National Park	🇪🇨 Ecuador	<5%
58	Cuyabeno Wildlife Reserve	🇪🇨 Ecuador	<5%
59	Monteverde Cloud Forest Reserve	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
60	Ostional Wildlife Refuge	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
61	Masaya Volcano National Park	🇳🇮 Nicaragua	<5%
62	Podocarpus National Park	🇪🇨 Ecuador	<5%
63	Serra dos Órgãos National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	<5%
64	Machalilla National Park	🇪🇨 Ecuador	<5%
65	Tortuguero National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
66	Sian Ka'an Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	<5%
67	Los Quetzales National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
68	Sierra de la Macarena National Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	<5%
69	Celestún Biosphere Reserve	🇲🇽 Mexico	<5%
70	Los Nevados National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	<5%
71	Marino Ballena National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	<5%
72	Chapada Diamantina National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	<5%
73	Henri Pittier National Park	🇻🇪 Venezuela	<5%
74	Madidi National Park	🇧🇴 Bolivia	<5%
75	Puracé National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	<5%
76	Chingaza National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	<5%
77	Parque Estadual Encontro das Águas	🇧🇷 Brazil	<5%
78	Tambopata National Reserve	🇵🇪 Peru	<5%
79	Noel Kempff Mercado National Park	🇧🇴 Bolivia	Insufficient data
80	Reserva de la Biosfera Mariposa Monarca	🇲🇽 Mexico	Insufficient data
81	Emas National Park	🇧🇷 Brazil	Insufficient data
82	Celaque National Park	🇭🇳 Honduras	Insufficient data
83	Utría National Natural Park	🇨🇴 Colombia	Insufficient data
84	La Tigra National Park	🇭🇳 Honduras	Insufficient data
85	Las Baulas Marine National Park	🇨🇷 Costa Rica	Insufficient data
86	El Impenetrable National Park	🇦🇷 Argentina	Insufficient data
87	Saguaro National Park	🇺🇸 United States	Insufficient data

← Back to Saguaro National Park

Short-tailed Hawk

About the Short-tailed Hawk

Closest Relatives at Saguaro National Park

Red-tailed Hawk

Red-shouldered Hawk

Gray-lined Hawk

Zone-tailed Hawk

Swainson's Hawk

Broad-winged Hawk

Ferruginous Hawk

Bald Eagle

Harris' Hawk

Hen Harrier

Sharp-shinned Hawk

White-tailed Kite

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found