# Black goshawk (*Astur melanoleucus*)

Canonical page: https://creaturedata.com/animals/black-goshawk  
Data as of: 2026-11-11

The black goshawk (Astur melanoleucus) is a species in the family Accipitridae, order Accipitriformes. Recorded adults weigh 550 g to 865 g and live up to 7.5 years.

## Quick facts

| Fact | Value |
|---|---|
| Weight | 550 g – 865 g |
| Length | Not recorded |
| Lifespan | 7.5 years |
| Diet | Carnivore |
| Longest recorded lifespan | 10 years |
| Main food | Not recorded |
| Habitat | forest |
| Egg incubation | 37.5 days |
| Young per litter or clutch | 2.8 |
| Age at maturity | 2.98 years |
| Litters or clutches a year | 1 |
| Lifestyle | Generalist |
| Migration | Sedentary |
| Conservation status | Not recorded |
| Countries on record | Not recorded |

## Classification

- kingdom: Animalia
- phylum: Chordata
- class: Aves
- order: Accipitriformes
- family: Accipitridae
- genus: Astur
- species: *Astur melanoleucus* (A. Smith, 1830)

Synonyms: *Accipiter melanoleucus*, *Accipiter melanoleueus*, *Neonisus melanoleucus*, *Nisus verreauxii*

## Common questions

### How big is the black goshawk?

An adult black goshawk weighs 550 g – 865 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

### How long does the black goshawk live?

The black goshawk has a recorded lifespan of 7.5 years.

### What kind of animal is the black goshawk?

The black goshawk (Astur melanoleucus) belongs to the family Accipitridae in the order Accipitriformes.

## Sources

- [An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1), 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](https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7), 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](https://www.checklistbank.org/dataset/316691), 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

Cite as: Black goshawk (Astur melanoleucus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/black-goshawk