Black-breasted buzzard
Hamirostra melanosternon (Gould, 1841)
The black-breasted buzzard (Hamirostra melanosternon) is a species in the family Accipitridae, order Accipitriformes. Recorded adults weigh 1.2 kg to 1.3 kg. Source checklists list it for 1 country: Australia. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.
Quick facts about the black-breasted buzzard
- Weight
- 1.2 kg – 1.3 kgsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Wingspan
- 1.41 m – 1.56 msrc for Wingspan
- Lifespan
- Not recorded
- Diet
- Carnivoresrc for Diet
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- woodlandsrc for Habitat
- Young per litter or clutch
- 2src for Young per litter or clutch
- Lifestyle
- Aerialsrc for Lifestyle
- Migration
- Partialsrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- 1 countrysrc for Countries on record
How big is the black-breasted buzzard?
Where does the black-breasted buzzard live?
Countries where Catalogue of Life checklists list the species. Many checklists carry no country data, so the list is often incomplete. It is not a range map.
The black-breasted buzzard is listed for 1 country.
- Listed
- Not listed
The same countries as a list
Listed by: ITIS (scope: global), through the Catalogue of Life.
What is the black-breasted buzzard?
The black-breasted buzzard (Hamirostra melanosternon) is a large raptor endemic to mainland Australia. First described by John Gould in 1841, it forms part of the family Accipitridae (hawks and eagles) and is most closely related to the square-tailed kite (Lophoictinia isura). It is a versatile hunter known for its special skill in cracking eggs. The species is common throughout most of its range.
From the Wikipedia article “Black-breasted buzzard” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Black-breasted_buzzard&oldid=1379733605), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the black-breasted buzzard endangered?
The black-breasted buzzard is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species.
How is the black-breasted buzzard classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classAves
- orderAccipitriformes
- familyAccipitridae
- genusHamirostra
- SpeciesHamirostra melanosternon (Gould, 1841)
Synonyms Buteo melanosternon, Gypoictinia melanosterna decepta, Gypoidinia melanosterna decepta, Hamirostra montana
Other names and names in other languages (34)
- Black-breasted kiteEnglish
- milà pitnegreCatalan
- luňák černoprsýCzech
- luňákovec černoprsýCzech
- GlenteørnDanish
- SchwarzbrustweihGerman
- SchwarzbrustmilanGerman
- nigrabrusta milvoEsperanto
- Milano pechinegroSpanish
- suurhaugasEstonian
- australianarohaukkaFinnish
- Milan à plastronFrench
- Bondrée à plastronFrench
- crnoprsa lunjaCroatian
- feketemellű kányasasHungarian
- Nibbio pettoneroItalian
- クロムネトビJapanese
- 검은가슴솔개Korean
- suopinis peslysLithuanian
- BuizerdwouwDutch
- kongeglenteNorwegian
- kanialec ogorzałyPolish
- bútio-de-peito-pretoPortuguese
- milhafre-de-peito-pretoPortuguese
- Канюковый коршунRussian
- Черногрудый канюковый коршунRussian
- koršun veľkozobýSlovak
- včelárovec veľkozobýSlovak
- Crnogruda lunjaSerbian
- svartbröstad gladaSwedish
- Kara Göğüslü ÇaylakTurkish
- шуліка рудошиїйUkrainian
- 黑胸鉤嘴鳶Chinese
- 黑胸钩嘴鸢Chinese
Relatives of the black-breasted buzzard
Other species in the same family Accipitridae.
Golden eagle
Aquila chrysaetos
Eurasian sparrowhawk
Accipiter nisus
Eurasian goshawk
Astur gentilis
Black kite
Milvus migrans
Common buzzard
Buteo buteo
Bearded vulture
Gypaetus barbatus
CompareBlack-breasted buzzard vs Golden eagleBlack-breasted buzzard vs Eurasian sparrowhawkBlack-breasted buzzard vs Eurasian goshawkBlack-breasted buzzard vs Black kite
Common questions
Answered only where our data holds the answer.
How big is the black-breasted buzzard?
An adult black-breasted buzzard weighs 1.2 kg – 1.3 kg and has a wingspan of 1.41 m – 1.56 m, according to values recorded on Wikidata.
Where does the black-breasted buzzard live?
Catalogue of Life checklists list the black-breasted buzzard for 1 country: Australia. Checklist coverage is uneven, so the true range may be wider.
Is the black-breasted buzzard endangered?
The black-breasted buzzard is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.
What kind of animal is the black-breasted buzzard?
The black-breasted buzzard (Hamirostra melanosternon) belongs to the family Accipitridae in the order Accipitriformes.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds · CC BY 4.0 · v7
Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). Black-breasted buzzard (Hamirostra melanosternon). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/black-breasted-buzzard
“Black-breasted buzzard (Hamirostra melanosternon).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/black-breasted-buzzard.
@misc{black_breasted_buzzard_2026,
title = {Black-breasted buzzard (Hamirostra melanosternon)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/black-breasted-buzzard},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}