Common Name: Striated Caracara Scientific Name: Phalcoboenus australis
NEAR THREATENED Striated Caracara Distribution: Southern South America
Habitat: Grassland & Coast Height: 53 - 65cm Weight: Approx. 1.1 - 1.2kg Diet: Carnivorous
Caracara chicks start off being orange in colour. Their plumage them darkens and as the birds become older they become more speckled in appearance. The adults have yellow-orange feet and the area around the base of the bill is yellow in colour. The bill itself is hooked, as the caracara is a bird of prey, and is blue-grey in colour. The caracara has strong legs and claws which if required it can use to dig with. The tip of the tail is white and younger birds may have lighter brown areas on their body. Caracara are found throughout Southern South America, the Falkland islands and the small islands round Tierra del Fuego. The caracara nest on cliff ledges where they construct a nest using twigs and vegetation, which they line with grass and wool. The female lays up to 4 eggs around October/November and the chicks fledge around February. The caracara is primarily a scavenger, eating carrion and in particular colonial seabirds. However, it will also attack weak creatures. This has led to it being persecuted by sheep farmers. When sheep become stuck on their backs and are unable to get up, they become weak and are easy pickings for the caracara. The breed around penguin colonies where they gorge themselves on dead penguins, to the extent that they are unable to fly for a short period. To find the dead penguins they spend a lot of time wandering around on the ground looking for them. When the penguins return to the sea the caracara disperse again.