The red goshawk (Erythrotriorchis radiatus) is a bird of prey found in Australia. It is found mainly in the savanna woodlands of northern Australia, particularly near watercourses. It takes a broad range of live prey, mostly birds.
Taxonomy
The red goshawk was first described by the English ornithologist John Latham in 1801 under the binomial name Falco radiatus.
The species used to be regarded as a very large member of the goshawk subfamily, Accipitrinae, but it is now believed that the resemblance to these other birds is convergent. Experts now group the red goshawk with the superficially dissimilar black-breasted buzzard Hamirostra melanosternon and square-tailed kite Lophoictinia isura as one of the Australasian old endemic raptors. It is believed that the ancestors of these birds, possibly together with a handful of species from South-east Asia and Africa, occupied Gondwana and over millions of years have diverged into their current forms.
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Using sequences of two or three genes, Lerner and Mindell found Hamirostra and Lophoictinia were related, and clustered with Perninae, but there was a large amount of divergence in this group. Their next-closest relative was Elanoides fortificatus. No samples from the rare Erythrotriorchis were included in their study.
Wink and Sauer-Gürth studied sequences of the mitochondrial cyt-b gene, finding a relationship between Hamirostra and Lophoictinia. They found this clade diverged basally from most of the other raptors in their study
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Gene sequencing studies have found a relationship between Hamirostra and Lophoictinia, however samples had not been obtained from Erythrotriorchis.<!--ref name=WSG2004--><!--ref name=LM2005-->
Description
thumb|Red goshawk, Cape York Peninsula, Queensland
Plumage is generally rufous; on the head streaked with black and white, having more white on the face and throat; on the upper surfaces (body and upperwings) marked with black. Flight feathers and tail are barred grey, dark above and light below. Underside (belly and underwing coverts) are rufous with slight black ticking. The female has a paler belly than the male. Juveniles (first year) have less streaking on the head.
Behaviour
Breeding
The nest is built in an exposed fork of a tall emergent tree. It is a stick platform lined with green leaves, 60–120 cm across and 30–50 cm deep.
The species is sparsely dispersed throughout its range across Australia but recent significant declines have been cause for concern. The main threats and causes of declines in eastern Australia have been attributed to clearing of forests and woodlands for agriculture which leads to degradation of remaining habitat, reduced available prey and reduction in suitable nesting sites.