By: Gabriel Minas A.
The Harpy eagle is the national symbol of Panama, the biodiversity symbol of Ecuador and the representation bird for the Colombian Air Force. It is said this eagle is the biggest one in South America.
In average, the female harpy eagle’s dimensions are 100 cm long, 200 cm wingspan (distance between the ends of the wings) and an a weight of 7,35 Kg. Males tend to be smaller.
Adults eagles have dark gray head feathers, coming to darker in their crest, neck and upper body. Then, they are gray to withish on the lower body and wings. They have stripes of gray on their tale and a typical strong beak, with claws that can reach 15 cm long. As usual on birds, the live in couples for life.
They build their nests on a range of 25 m of altitude, on the highest trees. In Ecuador they can be spot in the Yasuní National Park, especially in the Añangu land, where hunting of animals is banned by the Añangu Community. This actions follows the Harpy Eagle Conservation Program in the country, where efforts to help the eagle to be preserved are taken.
The Añangu Community have developed two small ecolodges where they offer birding tours, where this bird might be seen, on its natural space.
More on: www.napowildlifecenter.com/tour/birding-tour
