# Black-chested Buzzard-Eagle

*Geranoaetus melanoleucus*

Despite its common name, it is taxonomically a large hawk rather than a true eagle, though its massive wingspan rivals that of eagles.

- **Taxonomy:** Animalia › Chordata › Aves › Accipitriformes › Accipitridae › Geranoaetus
- **IUCN Red List status:** Least Concern
- **Population trend:** stable
- **Biome:** grassland
- **Habitat:** Montane grasslands, shrublands, paramo, open steppes, and rocky canyons.
- **Diet:** Mainly small to mid-sized mammals like rodents, rabbits, and degus, supplemented by birds, reptiles, and occasionally carrion.
- **Range:** Andes Mountains, Patagonia, Pampa, South America
- **Size:** Wingspan of 175-200 cm (5.7-6.6 ft); weight of 1.7-3.2 kg
- **Lifespan:** 20 to 25 years in the wild
- **Active:** diurnal
- **Threats:** Persecution by livestock farmers, secondary poisoning from rodenticides, and collisions with power lines.
- **Safe to approach?:** Harmless to humans under normal circumstances, but defensive if nesting. Maintain a safe distance of at least 50 meters, especially near cliffs or high perches. If the bird begins vocalizing loudly or swooping, slowly back away. In the extremely rare event of a talon scratch or bite, wash the wound with soap and water and seek medical evaluation to prevent infection.

## About

The black-chested buzzard-eagle ( Geranoaetus melanoleucus ) is a bird of prey of the hawk and eagle family (Accipitridae). It lives in open regions of South America. This species is also known as the black buzzard-eagle , grey buzzard-eagle or analogously with "eagle" or "eagle-buzzard" replacing "buzzard-eagle", or as the Chilean blue eagle . It is sometimes placed in the genus Buteo .

## Sources

- Plate: https://gaia-dex.com/species/3fc1f4a2-4fe7-412a-83df-0063a253db15
- iNaturalist: https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/5422
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Geranoaetus melanoleucus
- Conservation status: IUCN Red List category, as recorded by Gaia-Dex
- Photo: https://inaturalist-open-data.s3.amazonaws.com/photos/380823882/medium.jpg (Ariadna Tripaldi, CC-BY, via iNaturalist)

Habitat, diet, size and similar notes are AI-written summaries; check them against the linked sources before relying on them.