Slaty-backed Forest Falcon
Micrastur mirandollei
A large, uncommon forest-falcon notable for its unusually plain plumage - solid slate-grey above and mostly unbarred white below, unlike most of its close relatives.
- Feather type
- Short rounded flight feathers; plain dark tail feathers
- Colours
- Uniform slate-grey above, clean white below with little or no barring
- Bird size
- Crow-sized, ~38-45 cm
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Overview
The Slaty-backed Forest Falcon is one of the larger and scarcer members of its genus, found in humid lowland forest from Central America into the western Amazon. It stands out among forest-falcons for its comparatively plain plumage.
Where most forest-falcons show barred underparts, this species is largely clean white below, with a solid slate-grey back, head, and wings - a simpler pattern that helps separate it from similar-sized relatives.
It is rarely encountered, sticking to the shaded forest interior and calling infrequently compared to some relatives.
Identifying the Feather
Recognizing the feathers
- Body feathers below are largely plain white or very pale grey, lacking the bold barring seen in most other forest-falcons - the single best feather clue for this species.
- Upperside feathers are a uniform, unmarked slate-grey with no streaking or spotting.
- Flight feathers are short and rounded, as in all forest-falcons, for maneuvering through dense cover.
- Tail feathers are long and dark grey, showing only faint or narrow pale banding rather than the strong barring of Barred or Lined Forest-Falcons.
Similar species
- The near-absence of barring below readily separates a Slaty-backed Forest Falcon feather from Barred, Lined, or Cryptic Forest-Falcon feathers, which are all conspicuously barred.
Plumage & Molt
Plumage
Adults show a clean, simple two-tone plumage: solid slate-grey upperparts and mostly unmarked white underparts, with bright yellow-orange bare facial skin and legs.
Juveniles are browner above and may show faint barring below that adults lack, becoming plainer with age.
Molt proceeds gradually across the year in this non-migratory tropical species.
Habitat & Range
Habitat & range
Ranges from eastern Honduras and Nicaragua south through Central America into Colombia, Ecuador, and the western Amazon basin, in humid lowland primary forest.
A year-round resident, it does not migrate and appears to require large tracts of undisturbed forest.
Behavior & Field Notes
Behavior & field notes
Hunts by still-hunting from a concealed perch, taking small vertebrates and large insects with a short dash.
It calls less frequently than some relatives, making it one of the harder forest-falcons to detect; when it does call, the voice is a series of deep, evenly spaced notes.
A plain white body feather with a slate-grey back feather nearby, found in mature lowland forest, points strongly toward this species over its more heavily barred relatives.
Frequently asked questions
What is the single best clue to identify this species' feathers?
The near-total absence of barring on the underside - most relatives are conspicuously barred, but this species is largely plain white below.
Is this a common bird to find feathers from?
No, it is considered uncommon and secretive, so feather encounters are relatively rare.
Does the tail show any pattern?
Only faint, narrow banding at most - much subtler than the bold tail barring of related forest-falcons.
Where does it live?
Undisturbed lowland tropical forest from Central America into the western Amazon.
Slaty-backed Forest Falcon guides
In-depth guides for identifying and understanding Slaty-backed Forest Falcon.
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