Accipiter Explained

Accipiter is a genus of birds of prey in the family Accipitridae. With around 50 recognized species it is the most diverse genus in its family. Most species are called goshawks or sparrowhawks, although with the exception of the American goshawk almost all New World species are simply known as "hawks". They can be anatomically distinguished from their relatives by the lack of a procoracoid foramen. Two small and aberrant species usually placed here do possess a large procoracoid foramen and are also distinct as regards DNA sequence. They may warrant separation in the old genus Hieraspiza.^[1]

Extant accipiters range in size from the little sparrowhawk (A. minullus), in which the smallest males measure 20cm (10inches) long, span 39cm (15inches) across the wings and weigh 68g, to the northern goshawk (A. gentilis), in which the largest females measure 64cm (25inches) long, span 127cm (50inches) across the wings, and weigh 2.2kg (04.9lb).^[2] These birds are slender with short, broad, rounded wings and a long tail which helps them maneuver in flight. They have long legs and long, sharp talons used to kill their prey, and a sharp, hooked bill used in feeding. Females tend to be larger than males. They often ambush their prey, mainly small birds and mammals, capturing them after a short chase. The typical flight pattern is a series of flaps followed by a short glide. They are commonly found in wooded or shrubby areas.

The genus Accipiter was introduced by the French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760.^[3] The type species is the Eurasian sparrowhawk (Accipiter nisus).^[4] The name is Latin for "hawk", from accipere, "to grasp".^[5]

Procoracoid foramen

The procoracoid foramen (or coracoid foramen, coracoid fenestra) is a hole through the process at the front of the coracoid bone, which accommodates the supracoracoideus nerve. In some groups of birds it may be present as a notch, or incisura; or the notch may be partially or weakly closed with bone. In other groups the feature is completely absent.

The foramen is generally present in birds of prey, but it is absent in most Accipiter hawks that have been studied. This absence is proposed as a diagnostic feature.

A study of accipitrid skeletons found procoracoid incisurae (as opposed to foramina) in some specimens of the eagles Aquila gurneyi and A. chrysaetos, but not in four other Aquila species. The notch was variably open or weakly ossified in Spizastur melanoleucos, Lophoaetus occipitalis, Spizaetus ornatus, and Stephanoaetus coronatus. Also the buteonine hawks Buteo brachyurus and B. hemilasius had incisurae, differing from 17 other Buteo species.^[6]

In Circus the foramen was found to be variable, not only within species but even between sides in the same individual. It is usually open or absent but may be closed by "a thread of bone". Research in genetic phylogeny has since indicated that Circus is closely related to Accipiter.

The notch was also absent or indistinct in Harpagus bidentatus.

Urotriorchis macrourus has a well-developed procoracoid foramen, which suggests a separation from Accipiter. It may be related to the chanting goshawks in tribe Melieraxini.^[7]

Genetic phylogeny

Analysis of molecular genetics indicates that Accipiter is paraphyletic to the Circus harriers, even though the two groups differ in hunting habits and body shape.^[8] There are three or four clades of Accipiter, with Circus, Megatriorchis and Erythrotriorchis intermixed.

John Boyd proposes splitting Accipiter into four separate genera: Aerospiza, Tachyspiza, Accipiter, and Astur.^[9] In this scheme Tachyspiza has the most species, and a reduced Accipiter would have only six: Eurasian sparrowhawk (A. nisus, type species), rufous-breasted sparrowhawk (A. rufiventris), sharp-shinned hawk (A. striatus), white-breasted hawk (A. chionogaster), plain-breasted hawk (A. ventralis), rufous-thighed hawk (A. erythronemius).

• Tribe Accipitrini
  • (group 1)
    • Erythrotriorchis
    • Aerospiza
    • Tachyspiza
  • (group 2)
    • Accipiter
    • (group 2a)
      • Megatriorchis
      • Astur
      • Circus
        • harriers
        • swamp-harriers

List of Accipiter species

There are 50 species in the Accipiter genus.

Common name	Scientific name	IUCN Red List Status	Distribution	Picture
Status	Trend	Population
Crested goshawk	Accipiter trivirgatus (Temminck, 1824)	^[10]
Sulawesi goshawk	Accipiter griseiceps (Schlegel, 1862)	^[11]
Grey-bellied hawk	Accipiter poliogaster (Temminck, 1824)	^[12]		1,000–10,000
Red-chested goshawk	Accipiter toussenelii (J. Verreaux, E. Verreaux, and Des Murs, 1855)	^[13]			West and East Africa
African goshawk	Accipiter tachiro (Daudin, 1800)	^[14] ^[15]
Chestnut-flanked sparrowhawk	Accipiter castanilius Bonaparte, 1853	^[16]			West Africa
Shikra	Accipiter badius Gmelin, 1788	^[17]		500,000–999,999
Nicobar sparrowhawk	Accipiter butleri (Gurney, 1898)	^[18]		2,500–5,000	Nicobar Islands, India
Levant sparrowhawk	Accipiter brevipes (Severtzov, 1850)	^[19]		10,000–19,999
Chinese sparrowhawk	Accipiter soloensis (Horsfield, 1821)	^[20]		100,000–499,999	East and Southeast Asia
Frances's sparrowhawk	Accipiter francesiae Smith, 1834	^[21]			Comoro Islands and Madagascar
Spot-tailed sparrowhawk	Accipiter trinotatus Bonaparte, 1850	^[22]			Sulawesi, Indonesia
Grey goshawk	Accipiter novaehollandiae (Gmelin, 1788)	^[23]		2,500–9,999	Australia
Variable goshawk	Accipiter hiogaster (S. Müller, 1841)	^[24]			Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands
Brown goshawk	Accipiter fasciatus (Vigors and Horsfield, 1827)	^[25]			Australia, Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, East Timor, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, New Caledonia
Black-mantled goshawk	Accipiter melanochlamys (Salvadori, 1875)	^[26]		670–6,700	New Guinea
Pied goshawk	Accipiter albogularis Gray, 1870	^[27]		670–6,700	Bougainville, Solomon Islands
White-bellied goshawk	Accipiter haplochrous Sclater, 1859	^[28]		1,500–7,000	New Caledonia
Fiji goshawk	Accipiter rufitorques (Peale, 1848)	^[29]		670–6,700	Fiji
Moluccan goshawk	Accipiter henicogrammus (G.R. Gray, 1860)	^[30]		2,500–9,999	Halmahera, Indonesia
Slaty-mantled goshawk	Accipiter luteoschistaceus Rothschild & Hartert, 1926	^[31]		1,000–2,499	Papua New Guinea
Imitator goshawk	Accipiter imitator Hartert, 1926	^[32]		250–999	Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands
Grey-headed goshawk	Accipiter poliocephalus (Gray, 1858)	^[33]			New Guinea and surrounding islands
New Britain goshawk	Accipiter princeps Mayr, 1934	^[34]		2,500–9,999	Papua New Guinea
Red-thighed sparrowhawk	Accipiter erythropus (Hartlaub, 1855)	^[35]			West Africa
Little sparrowhawk	Accipiter minullus (Daudin, 1800)^[36]	^[37]			Southern and East Africa
Japanese sparrowhawk	Accipiter gularis (Temminck & Schlegel, 1844)	^[38]			East and Southeast Asia
Besra	Accipiter virgatus Temminck, 1822	^[39]		20,000–200,000
Dwarf sparrowhawk	Accipiter nanus (Blasius, 1897)	^[40]			Suwalesi and Buton, Indonesia
Rufous-necked sparrowhawk	Accipiter erythrauchen Gray, 1861	^[41]		670–6,700	Maluku Islands, Indonesia
Collared sparrowhawk	Accipiter cirrocephalus Vieillot, 1817	^[42]			Australia, New Guinea
New Britain sparrowhawk	Accipiter brachyurus Ramsay, 1879	^[43]		1,000–2,499	Papua New Guinea
Vinous-breasted sparrowhawk	Accipiter rhodogaster (Schlegel, 1862)	^[44]		670–6,700	Sulawesi, Indonesia
Madagascar sparrowhawk	Accipiter madagascariensis Smith, 1834	^[45]		3,300–6,700	Madagascar
Ovambo sparrowhawk	Accipiter ovampensis Gurney, 1875	^[46]			Sub-Saharan Africa
Eurasian sparrowhawk	Accipiter nisus (Linnaeus, 1758)	^[47]		2,200,000–3,300,000
Rufous-chested sparrowhawk	Accipiter rufiventris Smith, 1830	^[48]
Sharp-shinned hawk	Accipiter striatus Vieillot, 1808	^[49]
White-breasted hawk	Accipiter chionogaster Kaup, 1852				Central America
Plain-breasted hawk	Accipiter ventralis PL Sclater, 1866				Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, Ecuador, Bolivia
Rufous-thighed hawk	Accipiter erythronemius Kaup, 1850				Bolivia, Brazil, Paraguay, Uruguay, Argentina
Cooper's hawk	Accipiter cooperii (Bonaparte, 1828)	^[50]
Gundlach's hawk	Accipiter gundlachi Lawrence, 1860	^[51]		700 - 900	Cuba
Bicolored hawk	Accipiter bicolor (Vieillot, 1817)	^[52]	Unknown	20,000–49,999
Chilean hawk	Accipiter chilensis Philippi & Landbeck, 1864
Black sparrowhawk	Accipiter melanoleucus Smith, 1830	^[53]
Henst's goshawk	Accipiter henstii (Schlegel, 1873)	^[54]		670–1,500	Madagascar
Eurasian goshawk	Accipiter gentilis (Linnaeus, 1758)	^[55]			Europe and Asia
American goshawk	Accipiter atricapillus (Wilson, 1812)				Canada, the United States, and Mexico
Meyer's goshawk	Accipiter meyerianus (Sharpe, 1878)	^[56]		670–6,700	Indonesia, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands

Extinct species

• Powerful goshawk, Accipiter efficax^[57]
• Gracile goshawk, Accipiter quartus^[57]

Further reading

• Balete, Danilo S.; Tabaranza, Blas R. Jr. & Heaney, Lawrence R. (2006): An Annotated Checklist of the Birds of Camiguin Island, Philippines. Fieldiana Zool. New Series 106: 58–72. DOI:10.3158/0015-0754(2006)106[58:AACOTB]2.0.CO;2 HTML abstract
• Heaney, Lawrence R. & Tabaranza, Blas R. Jr. (2006): Mammal and Land Bird Studies on Camiguin Island, Philippines: Background and Conservation Priorities. Fieldiana Zool. New Series 106: 1–13. DOI:10.3158/0015-0754(2006)106[1:MALBSO]2.0.CO;2 HTML abstract
• Olson, Storrs L. (2006): Reflections on the systematics of Accipiter and the genus for Falco superciliosus Linnaeus. Bull. B.O.C. 126: 69–70. PDF fulltext. Archived copy.

External links

• Pictures of Accipiters and information about North American Accipiters
• Accipiter Photos

Notes and References

1. Olson (2006)
2. Raptors of the World by Ferguson-Lees, Christie, Franklin, Mead & Burton. Houghton Mifflin (2001), .
3. Book: Brisson, Mathurin Jacques . Mathurin Jacques Brisson . 1760 . Ornithologie; ou, Méthode contenant la division des oiseaux en ordres, sections, genres, espéces & leurs variétés . 1 . Jean-Baptiste Bauche . Paris . fr . 28, 310.
4. Book: Mayr . Ernst . Ernst Mayr . Cottrell . G. William . 1979 . Check-list of Birds of the World. Volume 1 . 1 . 2nd . Museum of Comparative Zoology . Cambridge, Massachusetts . 323 .
5. Book: Jobling, James A. . 2010. The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names . Christopher Helm . London . 978-1-4081-2501-4 . 30.
6. Olson. Storrs. Variation in the procoracoid foramen in the Accipitridae. Riv. Ital. Orn.. 1988. 57. 3–4. 161–164. 18 June 2016.
7. http://jboyd.net/Taxo/List9.html Boyd, John. "Afroaves", Taxonomy in Flux Checklist
8. Boyd cites the following sources for the embedding of Circus: Kocum (2006), Griffiths et al. (2007), Lerner et al. (2008), and Nagy and Tökölyi (2014)
9. His species-level arrangement is based on: Wink and Sauer-Gürth (2004), Breman et al. (2013), Barrowclough et al. (2014), Nagy and Tökölyi (2014) and Kocum (2006)
10. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter trivirgatus . e.T22695462A93510676 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695462A93510676.en.
11. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter griseiceps . e.T22695465A93510962 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695465A93510962.en.
12. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter poliogaster . e.T22695453A93510396 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695453A93510396.en.
13. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter toussenelii . e.T22727705A94957870 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22727705A94957870.en.
14. Web site: African Goshawk Accipiter tachiro . 31 October 2016 . Birdlife International.
15. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter tachiro . e.T22727697A95230244 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22727697A95230244.en.
16. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter castanilius . e.T22695486A93511134 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695486A93511134.en.
17. BirdLife International . 2019 . Accipiter badius . e.T22695490A155445348 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695490A155445348.en.
18. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter butleri . e.T22695494A93512023 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695494A93512023.en.
19. BirdLife International . 2018 . Accipiter brevipes . e.T22695499A131936047 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22695499A131936047.en.
20. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter soloensis . e.T22695503A93512856 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695503A93512856.en.
21. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter francesiae . e.T22695508A93513268 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695508A93513268.en.
22. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter trinotatus . e.T22695516A93513461 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695516A93513461.en.
23. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter novaehollandiae . e.T22727714A94958201 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22727714A94958201.en.
24. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter hiogaster . e.T22727721A94958386 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22727721A94958386.en.
25. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter fasciatus . e.T22695527A93513623 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695527A93513623.en.
26. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter melanochlamys . e.T22695532A93513869 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695532A93513869.en.
27. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter albogularis . e.T22695535A93514055 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695535A93514055.en.
28. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter haplochrous . e.T22695541A93514419 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695541A93514419.en.
29. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter rufitorques . e.T22695538A93514241 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695538A93514241.en.
30. BirdLife International . 2020 . Accipiter henicogrammus . e.T22695544A176242444 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T22695544A176242444.en.
31. BirdLife International . 2018 . Accipiter luteoschistaceus . e.T22695547A131936597 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22695547A131936597.en.
32. BirdLife International. . 2022 . Accipiter imitator . e.T22695553A171994925 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2022-1.RLTS.T22695553A171994925.en.
33. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter poliocephalus . e.T22695558A93515750 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695558A93515750.en.
34. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter princeps . e.T22695561A93515924 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695561A93515924.en.
35. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter erythropus . e.T22695576A93516770 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695576A93516770.en.
36. Web site: Little Sparrowhawk Accipiter minullus (Daudin, 1800) . 24 October 2016 . Deni Lepage. Avibase.
37. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter minullus . e.T22695581A93517052 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695581A93517052.en.
38. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter gularis . e.T22695585A93517362 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695585A93517362.en.
39. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter virgatus . e.T22695588A93517794 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695588A93517794.en.
40. BirdLife International. . 2022 . Accipiter nanus . e.T22695591A207761327 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2022-1.RLTS.T22695591A207761327.en.
41. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter erythrauchen . e.T22695596A93518315 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695596A93518315.en.
42. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter cirrocephalus . e.T22695599A93518623 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695599A93518623.en.
43. BirdLife International . 2018 . Accipiter brachyurus . e.T22695605A131936960 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22695605A131936960.en.
44. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter rhodogaster . e.T22695610A93519156 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695610A93519156.en.
45. BirdLife International . 2018 . Accipiter madagascariensis . e.T22695613A129916593 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2018-2.RLTS.T22695613A129916593.en.
46. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter ovampensis . e.T22695619A93519626 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695619A93519626.en.
47. BirdLife International. . 2021 . Accipiter nisus . e.T22695624A199751254 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2021-3.RLTS.T22695624A199751254.en.
48. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter rufiventris . e.T22695630A93520985 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695630A93520985.en.
49. BirdLife International . 2019 . Accipiter striatus . e.T22734130A155416546 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2019-3.RLTS.T22734130A155416546.en.
50. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter cooperii . e.T22695656A93521264 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695656A93521264.en.
51. BirdLife International . 2017 . Accipiter gundlachi . e.T22695659A112104677 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-1.RLTS.T22695659A112104677.en.
52. BirdLife International . 2020 . Accipiter bicolor . e.T22695669A168769390 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T22695669A168769390.en.
53. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter melanoleucus . e.T22695673A93522165 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695673A93522165.en.
54. BirdLife International. . 2020 . Accipiter henstii . e.T22695678A173353411 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T22695678A173353411.en.
55. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter gentilis . e.T22695683A93522852 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695683A93522852.en.
56. BirdLife International . 2016 . Accipiter meyerianus . e.T22695689A93523669 . 10.2305/IUCN.UK.2016-3.RLTS.T22695689A93523669.en.
57. Balouet, J.C. . Olson, Storrs L. . 129928825 . 1989. Fossil birds from Late Quaternary deposits in New Caledonia . Smithsonian Contributions to Zoology . 469. 469. 6 - 7. 10.5479/si.00810282.469. Storrs Olson . Jean Christophe Balouet .