Green Backed Heron - Bird photography and identification
Harpy Eagle (Harpia harpyja)
Harpy Eagle (Harpia harpyja)
Photo description
Harpy Eagle with Neil Rettig. The most powerful bird of prey on Earth, the harpy eagle, weighs up to 20 pounds (nine kilograms), has a seven-foot (2.1-meter) wing span, and is armed with talons as big as grizzly bear claws. Those deadly talons can exert several hundred pounds (over 50 kilograms) of pressure, crushing the bones of the sloths, monkeys, and other prey the eagle snatches from the rain forest canopy, often killing its victims instantly. The fearsome predator once ranged from southeast Mexico to Argentina. Now, Panama's pristine rain forests are among the few places where the bird has survived.
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Neil Rettig Harpy Eagle Harpia harpyja
2 comments have been posted about this photo

Wow...that's large, up close!
Posted on Nov 30, 2005
the information on the description is innacurate.
although their habitats have been destroyed for various reasons, they still thrive in high-canopied rainforests. bird enthusiasts/ornithologists i have spoken to have documented them in both costa rica an nicaragua but i am not limiting their known ranges to these countries either
Posted on Oct 6, 2008
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