Striated caracara

{{Short description|Species of bird}} {{Use American English|date=February 2023}} {{Speciesbox | image = Striated Caracara on Sealion Island (cropped).jpg | image_caption = Striated caracara adult on Sea Lion Island, Falkland Islands | status = NT | status_system = IUCN3.1 | status_ref = <ref name=IUCN>{{cite iucn |author=BirdLife International |date=2025 |title=''Phalcoboenus australis'' |article-number=e.T22696247A276845192 |doi=10.2305/IUCN.UK.2025-2.RLTS.T22696247A276845192.en}}</ref> | status2 = CITES_A2 | status2_system = CITES | status2_ref = <ref>{{Cite web|title=Appendices {{!}} CITES|url=https://cites.org/eng/app/appendices.php|access-date=February 13, 2023|website=cites.org}}</ref> | genus = Daptrius | species = australis | authority = (Gmelin, JF, 1788) | synonyms = ''Phalcoboenus australis'' | range_map = Phalcoboenus australis map.svg }}

The '''striated caracara''' ('''''Daptrius australis'''''), also known as '''Forster's caracara''', is a Near Threatened bird of prey of the family Falconidae, the falcons and caracaras.<ref name=IUCN/> It is found in Tierra del Fuego and the Falkland Islands.<ref name=SACCcountries>Remsen, J. V., Jr., J. I. Areta, E. Bonaccorso, S. Claramunt, A. Jaramillo, D. F. Lane, J. F. Pacheco, M. B. Robbins, F. G. Stiles, and K. J. Zimmer. 30 January 2023. Species Lists of Birds for South American Countries and Territories. https://www.museum.lsu.edu/~Remsen/SACCCountryLists.htm retrieved January 30, 2023</ref> In the Falklands it is known as the '''Johnny rook''', probably named after the Johnny penguin (gentoo penguin).<ref>{{cite book|last=Gorman|first=James|title=The Total Penguin|url=https://archive.org/details/totalpenguin00gorm|url-access=registration|year=1990|publisher=Prentice Hall|isbn=978-0-13-925041-5|page=[https://archive.org/details/totalpenguin00gorm/page/87 87]|quote= Sealers called it the "Johnny penguin" or "John penguin." In that incarnation, it seems to have given its name to the striated caracara, a bird of prey that feeds on young gentoo penguins in the Falklands and is called the "Johnny rook".}}</ref>

[[File:Forster_Phalcoboenus_australis.jpg|thumb|upright=0.8|Watercolour made by Georg Forster in 1775 on James Cook's second voyage to the Pacific Ocean.]]

==Taxonomy and systematics== The striated caracara was formally described in 1788 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's ''Systema Naturae''. He placed it with the falcons and eagles in the genus ''Falco'' and coined the binomial name ''Falco australis''.<ref>{{ cite book | last=Gmelin | first=Johann Friedrich | author-link=Johann Friedrich Gmelin| year=1788 | title=Systema naturae per regna tria naturae: secundum classes, ordines, genera, species, cum characteribus, differentiis, synonymis, locis | edition=13th | volume=1, Part 1 | language=Latin | location=Lipsiae [Leipzig] | publisher=Georg. Emanuel. Beer | page=259 | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/2896859 }}</ref><ref>{{ cite book | editor1-last=Mayr | editor1-first=Ernst | editor1-link=Ernst Mayr | editor2-last=Cottrell | editor2-first=G. William | year=1979 | title=Check-List of Birds of the World | volume=1 | edition=2nd | publisher=Museum of Comparative Zoology | location=Cambridge, Massachusetts | page=392 | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/16109032 }}</ref> The specific epithet ''australis'' is Latin meaning "southern".<ref>{{cite book | last=Jobling | first=James A. | year=2010| title=The Helm Dictionary of Scientific Bird Names | publisher=Christopher Helm | location=London | isbn=978-1-4081-2501-4 | page=62 | url=https://archive.org/stream/Helm_Dictionary_of_Scientific_Bird_Names_by_James_A._Jobling#page/n62/mode/1up }}</ref> Gmelin based his description on the "Statenland eagle" that had been described in 1781 by the English ornithologist John Latham in his ''A General Synopsis of Birds''. Latham had obtained notes on the bird from the naturalist Johann Reinhold Forster.<ref>{{ cite book | last=Latham | first=John | author-link=John Latham (ornithologist) | year=1781 | title=A General Synopsis of Birds | volume=1, Part 1 | publisher=Printed for Leigh and Sotheby | location=London | pages=40–41 | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/33727548 }}</ref> Johann Forster and his son Georg Forster had accompanied James Cook on his second voyage to the Pacific Ocean. The son Georg made a water-colour drawing of the striated caracara during their visit to Staten Island (Isla de los Estados, east of Tierra del Fuego). The drawing is dated 3 January 1775 and is now held by the Natural History Museum in London.<ref>{{ cite journal | last=Lysaght | first=Averil | date=1959 | title=Some eighteenth century bird paintings in the library of Sir Joseph Banks (1743-1820) | journal=Bulletin of the British Museum (Natural History), Historical Series | volume=1 | issue=6 | pages=251-371 [281, No. 34] | doi=10.5962/p.92313 | url=https://www.biodiversitylibrary.org/page/2238991 | doi-access=free }}</ref>

The striated caracara was formerly placed in the genus ''Phalcoboenus''. Molecular genetic studies found that the genus ''Milvago'' was polyphyletic with the chimango caracara sister to the genus ''Phalcoboenus'' and the yellow-headed caracara sister to the genus ''Daptrius''.<ref>{{Cite journal | last1=Fuchs | first1=J. | last2=Johnson | first2=J.A. | last3=Mindell | first3=D.P. | date=2012 | title=Molecular systematics of the caracaras and allies (Falconidae: Polyborinae) inferred from mitochondrial and nuclear sequence data | journal=Ibis | volume=154 | issue=3 | pages=520-532 | doi=10.1111/j.1474-919X.2012.01222.x | url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/256255461 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal | last1=Fuchs | first1=J. | last2=Johnson | first2=J.A. | last3=Mindell | first3=D.P. | date=2015 | title=Rapid diversification of falcons (Aves: Falconidae) due to expansion of open habitats in the Late Miocene | journal=Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution | volume=82 | pages=166-182 | doi=10.1016/j.ympev.2014.08.010 | url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/266248448 }}</ref> As the genetic divergence was relatively shallow, the polyphyly was resolved by expanding the genus ''Daptrius'' to include the species formerly placed in the genera ''Milvago'' and ''Phalcoboenus''. The species is monotypic: no subspecies are recognised.<ref name=avilist>{{ cite web | author=AviList Core Team | date=2025 | title=AviList: The Global Avian Checklist, v2025 | doi=10.2173/avilist.v2025 | doi-access=free | url=http://www.avilist.org/checklist/v2025/ | access-date=2 November 2025 }}</ref>

==Description== The striated caracara is {{convert|53|to|65|cm|in|abbr=on}} long with a wingspan of {{convert|116|to|125|cm|in|abbr=on}}, and weighs about {{convert|1.2|kg|lb|abbr=on}}. The sexes' plumages are alike. Adults are mostly black to brownish black with white or tawny streaks on the upper back, neck, and breast. Their tail has a wide white tip, their underwing coverts and thighs are bright rusty rufous, and their primaries have white bases. The bare skin on their face is salmon pink to yellowish orange, their iris brown, and their legs and feet bright orange-yellow. Juveniles are black to brownish black with a chestnut tail and gray bare parts; they gradually attain adult plumage and bare skin colors over their first five years.<ref name=Ferguson>{{cite book | last1=Ferguson-Lees | first1=James | author1-link=James Ferguson-Lees | last2=Christie | first2=David A. | date=2001 | title=Raptors of the World | location=New York | publisher=Houghton Mifflin | isbn=0-618-12762-3 | pages=802–803 | url=https://archive.org/details/raptorsofworld0000ferg/page/802/mode/1up | url-access=registration }}</ref><ref name=STCA-BOW>Bierregaard, R. O., G. M. Kirwan, E. F. J. Garcia, and J. S. Marks (2022). Striated Caracara (''Daptrius australis''), version 1.1. In Birds of the World (N. D. Sly, Editor). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA. https://doi.org/10.2173/bow.strcar1.01.1 retrieved February 15, 2023</ref>

The most common calls are "a cat-like wailing ''waa-aow'', a high-pitched, repeated scream, a loud cawing ''kaa'' in face of human intruders, and short sharp clicks around the nest."<ref name=STCA-BOW/>

==Distribution and habitat== The striated caracara is found on the outer Falkland Islands, Isla Grande de Tierra del Fuego, Isla de los Estados (Staten Island), Isla Navarino, Cape Horn, and other islands in the far south of Argentina and Chile. It was hunted to extirpation on East Falkland. It primarily inhabits rocky coasts with adjacent tussock grass but also ranges inland to mountain foothills up to about {{convert|500|m|ft|abbr=on}} above sea level.<ref name=Ferguson/><ref name=STCA-BOW/> It is generally non-migratory but may move seasonally to higher elevations. It also may be only a winter visitor to some of the South American islands.<ref name=Ferguson/><ref name=STCA-BOW/>

==Behavior== ===Feeding===

The striated caracara is an opportunist species, feeding on everything from carrion, seabirds, marine mammals, invertebrates, stolen eggs, livestock, and food scraps around human settlements.<ref>{{cite web |title=Striated Caracara |url=https://oceanwide-expeditions.com/to-do/wildlife/striated-caracara#:~:text=Do%20Striated%20Caracaras%20have%20any,have%20any%20significant%20natural%20predators.}}</ref> Recorded prey species include penguin adults and chicks,<ref>{{cite web |title=Attempted Predation of Striated Caracara on Gentoo Penguin |url=https://twitter.com/worldbirds32/status/1564258747609923584}}</ref> brown skua,<ref>{{cite web |title=Demography and breeding success of Falklands skua at Sea Lion Island, Falkland Islands |url=http://eleseal.org/pdf_vari/ESRG_Skua_Report_2018.pdf}}</ref> seal pups such as the South American fur seal and Southern elephant seal, blackish cinclodes, various shellfish, and eggs from nesting seabirds including penguins, cormorants; among many other species.<ref>{{cite web |title=Caracara: variable diet |url=http://eleseal.org/cara/cara_diet.html}}</ref> Most predation of larger species is usually done in small groups, where they together mob the larger animal. Invertebrates are also part of their diet, including kelp fly larvae dug from intertidal kelp wrack, beetles, mussels, limpets, and earthworms dug from invasive grasses in hillside drainages. They also have been recorded predating young lambs, which led to persecution by sheep farmers before a 1999 law forbid killing the species.<ref>{{cite web |title=Striated Caracara Phalcoboenus australis |url=https://www.oiseaux-birds.com/card-striated-caracara.html}}</ref> Striated caracaras are also parasitic, displacing and robbing scavengers and small groups will attack healthy birds as large as kelp geese (''Chloephaga hybrida'').<ref name=Ferguson/><ref name=STCA-BOW/> A population of striated caracaras on New Island was found to largely subsist on live slender-billed prions (both nestlings and older birds), which were hunted in the open or taken from nest burrows.<ref name=catry>{{cite journal|last1=Catry|first1=P.|last2=Lecoq|first2=M.|last3=Strange|first3=I.J.|year=2008|title=Population growth and density, diet|journal=Polar Biology|volume=31|pages=1167–1174|doi=10.1007/s00300-008-0454-8}}</ref>

Recent tests of wild striated caracaras in the Falklands have demonstrated that they have problem-solving abilities comparable to parrots.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Harrington |first1=Katie J. |last2=Folkertsma |first2=Remco |last3=Auersperg |first3=Alice M.I. |author3-link=Alice Auersperg |last4=Biondi |first4=Laura |last5=Lambert |first5=Megan L. |title=Innovative problem solving by wild falcons |journal=Current Biology |date=January 2024 |volume=34 |issue=1 |pages=190–195.e3 |doi=10.1016/j.cub.2023.10.061 |pmid=37989310 |bibcode=2024CBio...34E.190H |url=https://www.cell.com/current-biology/fulltext/S0960-9822(23)01462-8 |access-date=14 June 2024|hdl=11336/224748 |hdl-access=free }}</ref>

===Breeding=== On the Falkland Islands the striated caracara breeds between late October and January. Its nest is built of twigs and grass on the ground, under tussoc grass clumps, or on cliff ledges. It usually nests in loose colonies with nests sometimes as little as {{convert|7|m|ft|sigfig=1|abbr=on}} apart, and there is some evidence of cooperative breeding. The clutch size is usually two eggs but can be up to four. The incubation period, time to fledging, and details of parental care are not known.<ref name=Ferguson/><ref name=STCA-BOW/>

==Status== The IUCN has assessed the striated caracara as Near Threatened. It has a restricted range and an estimated population between 2,500 - 5,000 mature individuals, which is believed to be decreasing. The predicted ecosystem stresses of climate change are the only known significant threat.<ref name=IUCN/> The breeding population on the Falklands in 2006 was about 500 pairs, and 350 to 450 pairs may also be on the South American islands.<ref name=STCA-BOW/>

==Gallery== <gallery> File:Striated Caracara on Saunders Island (5551648335).jpg|Immature striated caracara on Saunders Island, Falkland Islands File:Striated Caracara with a dead Gentoo Penguin chick (5557011581).jpg|Subadult striated caracara feeding on a dead gentoo penguin chick File:Striatedcaracara2.jpg| Juvenile (2 year old) striated caracara File:Striatedcaracara5.jpg File:Striatedcaracara1.jpg File:Phalcoboenus australis -Amazona Zoo, Cromer, Norfolk, England-8a.jpg|Subadult striated caracara at Amazona Zoo, Norfolk, England </gallery>

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== *[https://www.facebook.com/FIjohnnyrooks/ Falkland Islands Johnny Rooks] Facebook research page *[https://www.facebook.com/caranchoaustral/ Carancho austral en Tierra del Fuego] Facebook research page *{{usurped|1=[https://web.archive.org/web/20001001052007/http://www.bird-stamps.org/cspecies/3200600.htm Stamps]}} issued for Falkland Islands

==Further reading== {{Commons|Phalcoboenus australis}} *{{cite book | last =Meiburg | first =Jonathan | author-link =Jonathan Meiburg | title =A Most Remarkable Creature | publisher =Alfred A. Knopf | date =2021 | location = New York| language =en | isbn =978-1-101-87570-4 }}

{{Taxonbar|from=Q916843}} {{Authority control}}

Category:Caracaras Category:Daptrius Category:Birds of the Falkland Islands Category:Birds of Tierra del Fuego Category:Birds described in 1788 Category:Taxa named by Johann Friedrich Gmelin