NATURAL HISTORY · CATALOGUE RECORD
Harris's Hawk
Parabuteo unicinctus (Temminck, 1824)
Source-backed taxonomic record
Accepted species in Catalogue of Life’s 11 September 2026 base release. This preserves the source classification and available supporting data; it is not a completed species monograph.
Open encyclopedia reference
Parabuteo unicinctus is a medium-large bird of prey that breeds from the southwestern United States south to Chile, central Argentina, and Brazil. It contains two subspecies, the Harris's hawk (P. u. harrisi) and the bay-winged hawk (P. u. unicinctus). The species is also occasionally referred to as the dusky hawk and known in Latin America as the peuco.
Harris's hawk is notable for its behavior of hunting cooperatively in packs consisting of tolerant groups, while other raptors often hunt alone. Harris's hawks' social nature has been attributed to their intelligence, which makes them easy to train and has made them a popular bird for use in falconry.
Wikipedia contributors, Harris's hawk; see linked history · CC BY-SA 4.0 . Plain-text lead excerpt, at most 180 words; no infobox or later sections Retrieved 2026-10-05T03:25:35.858801+00:00. This reference remains separate from the taxonomic record.
Identity & source status
- Scientific name
- Parabuteo unicinctus (Temminck, 1824)
- Name authority
- (Temminck, 1824)
- Common name
- Harris's Hawk
- Rank
- species
- Accepted status
- accepted
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Accipitriformes
- Family
- Accipitridae
- Genus
- Parabuteo
- Extinction status
- Recorded extant
Classification family tree
Nested taxonomic groups from the source. This is not a direct-ancestor chain, a dated evolutionary tree or a phylogenetic reconstruction.
- domainEukaryota (Chatton, 1925) Whittaker & Margulis, 1978
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- subphylumVertebrata
- infraphylumGnathostomata
- parvphylumOsteichthyes
- megaclassTetrapoda
- classAves
- orderAccipitriformes
- familyAccipitridae Vigors, 1824
- genusParabuteo Ridgway, 1874
- speciesParabuteo unicinctus (Temminck, 1824)
Close classified relatives
These entries share the source’s genus, Parabuteo. They are not necessarily the closest relatives established by molecular evidence.
| Species | Classification | Source status |
|---|---|---|
| White-rumped HawkParabuteo leucorrhous (Quoy & Gaimard, 1824) | AccipitridaeChordata | Accepted speciesRecorded extant |
Names & synonyms
Names explicitly linked to this accepted taxon in the source. Synonymy can change with revision.
| Recorded name | Source status |
|---|---|
| Falco unicinctus Temminck, 1824 Temminck, 1824 | synonym |
Documented distribution
Source distribution statements, not a complete range map. A listed locality is not necessarily a place of origin.
North America
South America
Source literature & publication evidence
References attached to this source record, including nomenclatural citations where supplied. This is a selected bibliography; abbreviated citations remain in the source’s form.
- https://www.itis.gov/servlet/SingleRpt/SingleRpt?search_topic=TSN&search_value=175397 Source fields: Taxon.tsv dwc:namePublishedIn, Taxon.tsv dcterms:references
Origins, evidence & remaining research
Name authority and publication references document nomenclature where the source supplies it. They do not establish evolutionary origins or the earliest fossil occurrence.
Specimen-level evidence, morphology, ecological research, phylogenetic studies, a comprehensive bibliography and a located literary passage have not yet been compiled for this record. A suitable sourced image remains to be added.
Dataset citation & attribution
This exact taxon in ChecklistBank · Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11
Catalogue of Life 2026-09-11; dataset 316321; doi:10.48580/dgz5n. https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/ . Retrieved 5 October 2026.
Stable key: col:4CN4R. Classification follows source parent identifiers. English common names may vary by region.