HARPY EAGLE FACT SHEET

NAME: Harpy Eagle (Harpia harpyja)

WEIGHT: Male: 10-16 pounds (5-8 kilograms), Female: 14-18 pounds (7-9 kilograms)

WINGSPAN: 7 feet

VOICE: Long whistle repeated 8-12 times and other calls including a series of short clicks.

NEST SITE: Builds large nest of sticks above the canopy of the forest, 100- 120 feet (40 meters) high on the crutch of the first branch of the tallest emergent trees.

INCUBATION PERIOD: About 53 to 56 days for egg to hatch.

FOOD SUPPLY: Primarily medium-sized and large arboreal mammals, mainly sloths. Also some reptiles (such as Green Iguanas) and few birds.

RANGE: This species is geographically restricted to the tropical lowland forests of Central and South America, from southeastern Mexico to northern Argentina and southern Brazil.

POPULATION: Unknown but very rare. Since 1992, nine nests have been confirmed in Guyana, 10 in Venezuela, and eight in Panama.

REPRODUCTION: Only one chick hatches, although two eggs are laid. This species may have the longest rearing period of any raptor, two or three years may pass between the production of a chick and the next nesting attempt.

CAUSE OF DECLINE: Forest fragmentation, destruction of nesting sites, and shooting.



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