UF/IFAS Okeechobee County Extension Service

458 Highway 98 North

Okeechobee, FL 34972-2578

Phone: (863) 763-6469

E- mail: dfculbert@ifas.ufl.edu

29 October 2003

Feature Article - for release the week of November 2, 2003

Dan Culbert - Extension Horticulture Agent

Many have seen the regal eagle and the bobbing robin, but only a few avid bird watchers are familiar with the Crested caracara. According to Osceola County Agent Eleanor Foerste, this large bird is one of 50 listed species that are protected in Florida because of a limited population. Okeechobee County is home to several species of birds that may need our help to continue living, including the Crested caracara.

Sometimes called the Mexican buzzard, this is a cousin to hawks, falcons and eagles. It has a featherless face like other vultures which can range in color from yellow to orange to red, depending on the situation. When calm, the face skin is bright red orange, but when threatened, it turns a pumpkin color or yellow. It has a distinctive crown of black feathers that lay flat like a skull cap most of the time, but is raised when threatened.

Crested caracaras have a light colored neck and a white throat, with dark brown feathers on the wings, back and belly. The white head and tail may confuse it with the American bald eagle, but a closer look shows a dark tail bar and white wing tips. (Mature eagles have dark wings and the entire head and tail are white.) The large size, nearly two foot tall and wing spread of 4 feet makes them easy to see.

Caracaras may occasionally soar like eagles, but they are more often seen flapping their wings almost constantly when in flight. Though graceful in the air, the birds have an awkward appearance as they stand and walk upright on the ground to feed, with very long legs in comparison to body size.

The crested caracara lives in Florida north and west of Lake Okeechobee. They frequent local prairies, preferring grasslands, but tall cabbage palms or other trees are needed for nesting. Both male and female crested caracaras share in nest building. They generally lay only one clutch of two or three eggs a year with nesting beginning in late September and continuing through the winter. Males and females incubate the eggs for about a month and the young will leave the nest in about two months. Individual birds may live to be 20 or 30 years old.

Their heavy curved bill is designed for ripping and tearing flesh. They will catch their dinner on the run or in the air. They are also found around road kill or other carrion that doesn’t take a lot of hunting effort. If you see them feeding, slow down so they will not be killed as well.

These birds will eat almost anything including insects, frogs, crabs, small birds, lizards, rats, snakes, fish and turtles. They have even been known to steal food from other wildlife. They have been falsely accused of preying on calves. Since they are not finicky eaters, food is not likely to be the limiting factor.

To insure that threatened wildlife survive, a first step is to understand their habitat and then identify the requirements that limit their population. For plants, it may be sunlight, soil moisture or nutrient availability. For birds, availability of adequate food, cover or nesting sites are important. If food is plentiful, then what may be the factor that limits their population size locally?

Often times, it is habitat destruction. The caracara’s natural habitat is wet or dry prairies. Natural fires from lightning storms play a role in removing trees and maintaining a low tree density in grasslands. Suppressing natural fires leads to thick brush and tree cover that is not as good for the nesting and feeding habitat for these birds.

Fortunately, much of our county is in natural range or improved pasture that is maintained in low grass cover, very suitable for caracara populations. Diversity in plant species leads to increase in animal species. If property owners want to see more of these birds, they can maintain a mix of natural range, improved pasture and woodlands. Prescribed fire is a tool that is often used to manage natural lands and pastures and contributes to improved habitat for many animals.

Want to see this interesting bird? Keep on the lookout in pasture areas during a drive on any of our county highways. If you are interested in learning more about observing wildlife in their natural habitats, check out the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission’s wildlife viewing website at http://www.floridaconservation.org/viewing/index.html

If you need additional information on watchable wildlife, call or stop by our webpage at http://okeechobee.ifas.ufl.edu or visit our office at 458 Hwy 98 North. Our phone number is 763-6469, and you can email us at okeechobee@ifas.ufl.edu.

REFERENCES

Gough, G.A., Sauer, J.R., Iliff, M. Crested caracara Caracara cheriway in Patuxent Bird Identification Infocenter. 1998. Version 97.1. Patuxent Wildlife Research Center, Laurel, MD. http://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/id/framlst/i3620id.html

Layne, James N. Crested Caracara Caracara cheriway in FFWCC Florida’s Breeding Bird Atlas http://www.wildflorida.org/bba/CRCA.htm

Species Spotlight: Crested Caracara. FFWCC Wildlife Viewing website, 1999. http://www.floridaconservation.org/viewing/species/crstcaracara.htm

The Florida Cooperative Extension Service - Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer authorized to provide research, educational information, and other services to individuals and institutions that function without regard to race, color, sex, age, handicap, or national origin. Florida Cooperative Extension Service / IFAS /University of Florida.