Guadalupe Caracara (Polyborus lutosus)

O Caracara de Guadalupe(Polyborus lutosus) was a bird of prey that inhabited the Mexico, especially the Guadalupe Islands, 241 km off the west coast of the country.

After the indiscriminate hunting done by settlers since the discovery of the island in 1493 by Christopher Columbus, there are no records of the breeding or existence of the species, being considered an extinct animal.

The bird belonged to the falconiformes class, of the diurnal raptors family.

Characteristics of the Caracara de Guadalupe

The bird was around 60 cm long, considering the measurement between the head and the tail.

Its plumage consisted of a white coloration on the neck part, with some darker spots on the top of the head, in addition to colors in shades of black and dark brown checkered, on the rest of the body.

Regarding the beak and legs, the predominant colors were yellow and orange.

The construction of nests for birds of this species was very elaborate and organized. The tops of cliffs and places of difficult access were chosen for the deposit of eggs, usually done in the month of April.

The average amount was three eggs per year.

At South America and in Brazil, there is the presence of the caracará subspecies (caracara plancus), known as the “Brazilian eagle”, which also belongs to the class of birds of prey.

Like the caracara de guadalupe, its length is 60 centimeters in length with its wingspan reaching 123 centimeters.

Illustration of Polyborus lutosus, Caracara de Guadalupe

Feeding habits of the Guadalupe Caracara

It is believed that the main sources of food for these animals were the worms, small rodents, crustaceans, insects, invertebrate animals, small mammals and even corpse remains.

The extinction of the Guadalupe caracara

The species of caracara from the Guadalupe Islands no longer exists. The last records made by the colonizers at the end of the 19th century point to its complete extinction.

Since the existence of the species became known, the birds began to be hunted in great numbers. proportion by shepherds of sheep, who said that the animal attacked the newborn puppies of herds.

But it was in the year 1900 that the fate of the caracara-de-guadalupe was in fact decided. After the settlers abandoned the island, it was believed that even on a reduced scale, the species would be able to reproduce and increase its population.

However, the ornithologist and researcher Rollo Beck, upon discovering the place, shot down nine of the remaining 11, believing them to be common species of birds that inhabited the island. After capturing them for study, the researcher found the error and realized that it was a species at imminent risk of extinction.

Datasheet

• Class: birds
• Order: Falconiformes
• Family: Falconidae
• Gender: polyborus
• Species: Polyborus lutosus

See too: 1,173 Brazilian species are at risk of extinction