Solitary Eagle. Adult bird found on Mountain Pine Ridge, Cayo, Belize on November 25, 2004. Photos © Charles Anderson (used with permission). This sighting generated a great deal of interest, since it represents perhaps the first photo documentation of this species in Belize. In the wake of this sighting, correspondence between Lee Jones, Bill Clark, and myself resulted in the preparation of an article on the identification of Solitary Eagle (in press) with photos, and color illustrations by John Schmitt. We agreed that current field guide illustrations are inadequate, and that observers should pay attention to wing shape (broadest close to body), tail shape (short and squared off), and position and thickness of legs (extending almost to tip of tail). Details will be covered in full in the forthcoming article, which will also deal with the identification of perched birds and birds in pre-definitive plumages (see 2006 update).

Documentation written at the time of the sighting:

Solitary Eagle Harpyhaliaetus solitarius sighting on the Mountain Pine Ridge, Belize.

On November 25, 2004, I was visiting Belize as part of a Field Guides birding tour. As we were traveling between Douglas D’Silva and the Rio On Picnic Area on the main road through Mountain Pine Ridge [16°58.744N, 88°58.189W, 1631ft., WGS84] about 11:30 CST, Israel Canto and I spotted a large raptor circling low over the dead pines ahead and to the left of the road. It appeared huge and lumbering, soaring with a rather long duration, slow circling as it rode upwards in a thermal. It had incredibly broad wings, but did not strike me as being a King Vulture so I asked Israel to stop. We parked some 300-400 feet from the bird, where I got my bins on it. To my amazement, I saw that it was a gray-colored bird (i.e., lighter than the darker blackish-gray of Buteogallus), clearly evident as it flew against a blue sky background with the sun at our backs, and that it had a single white tail band on an otherwise short, dark tail. I shouted to folks that I believed that it was a Solitary Eagle and told everyone to jump out to get a good view of the bird. After everyone had gotten out and was viewing the bird, I suggested that those with cameras try and get some pictures, knowing that this species is only recently known from the Mountain Pine Ridge area, based on very few records. At this point, the bird had gained quite a bit of altitude, and had gotten against a bright overcast sky. Thus any subtly of plumage tone was lost, though the photos (care of Charles Anderson) do an excellent job of documenting the shape of this bird.

I have been birding regularly in the Neotropics for 17 years, and have had occasion to see many Common and Great black-hawks over the years. I have certainly looked over many of them thinking about the possibility of Solitary Eagle. I had also wondered if I would really be able to easily discriminate between an eagle and one of the black-hawks. Well I have to say that I was struck by the really huge apparent size of this bird. It circled in really wide circles much like a large eagle, condor, or large Old World Vulture, rather than a Buteogallus, buteo-like manner. That combined with the paler gray tones to the plumage were what led me to quickly conclude that it was this species. Curiously, in reviewing the illustrations of Webb in Howell & Webb, I was struck by how the eagle we had seen had fingered primaries much like the illustrated Common Black-Hawk, with the outermost ones noticeably shorter than adjacent, inner ones, rather than the longer outer primaries of the Solitary Eagle illustration. I would be curious to learn more about this feature. The thick legs also extended clearly through the white tail band, which I was thinking beforehand to be more of a Great Black-Hawk feature. Apparently, this doesn’t hold true. The tail pattern appears correct for Solitary Eagle, with a rather broad, dark terminal band, a white median band, and another broad basal band of black. In addition, some white visible at the extreme base of the tail, mostly obscured by undertail coverts.

On March 1, 2005, Solitary Eagle was again recorded on Mountain Pine Ridge. A pair of birds were observed on the Hidden Valley Inn property near King Vulture Falls, having been first noticed by a sharp-eyed participant Judy Smith (as part of an organised RV Caravan birding tour) and Hidden Valley Inn guide Rick Romero. The pair of eagles was observed copulating, and a photo of one of these birds was obtained by leader Bert Frentz, see:

http://www.bafrenz.com/birds/Belize05/SoEa1.htm

On November 25, 2005, I was once again in Belize with Israel Canto and another Field Guides group. While on Mountain Pine Ridge at about 6:20 am, participant Chris Havard spotted a large bird perched in a dead Caribbean pine snag. I glanced over at it and realized that it was another Solitary Eagle immediately due to its immense size, primaries projecting well beyond the tail tip, and the fact that the eagle actually had its crest partially raised at that moment. Even when seen in good light, it was not appreciably paler than a Common Black-Hawk. We were able to study it at length both perched and in flight, and obtain great documentary photos. The location was just north of the Rio On Picnic Area on the road to Caracol [17°00.394N, 88°58.444W, 1493ft.]. This was one year to the day of my previous sighting and less than two miles away! All of the images below are copyrighted © Chris D Benesh.

It is getting to the point where I am no longer surprised to see Solitary Eagle in Belize. For the third year in a row, I managed to see this species on November 25th. In 2006, the bird was found south of Douglas de Silva [at 16°55.155N, 89°00.295W, 1725ft]. It was first noticed by our guide Rick Romero. This year’s bird was in juvenile plumage, which suggests the potential for this species breeding in Belize. I was able to get some pictures as was participant Kevin Heffernan. One can see in the photos the bold black markings on the chest, and in the pre-flight shot, the black leg feathering. On the juvenile bird, the wingtips fall short of the tail tip, unlike that of the shorter tailed adult.

Also note that our article on Solitary Eagle identification has been published in the November/December 2006 issue of Birding magazine, Volume 38(6):66-74.

A juvenile Solitary Eagle photographed on Mountain Pine Ridge, Belize on November 25, 2006. The above three shots are © Chris D Benesh. The portrait below is © Kevin Heffernan.