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|conservation=Critically endangered<ref>https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22728485/94988100</ref>

|conservation=Critically endangered<ref>https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22728485/94988100</ref>

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The '''Cuban kite''' (''Chondrohierax wilsonii'') is an extremely rare [[bird of prey]] from the family Accipitridae, and found on the island of [[Cuba]].  Originally considered a subspecies of the [[hook-billed kite]] (''Chondrohierax uncinatus''), genetic research confirmed it as a separate species in 2007<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20121016074943/http://peregrinefund.org/docs/pdf/research-library/2007/2007-Johnson-hook-billed-kite.pdf</ref>. It was named in honor of American ornithologist Alexander Wilson.

The '''Cuban kite''' (''Chondrohierax wilsonii'') is an extremely rare [[bird of prey]] from the family Accipitridae, and found on the island of [[Cuba]].  Originally considered a subspecies of the [[hook-billed kite]] (''Chondrohierax uncinatus''), genetic research confirmed it as a separate species in 2007.<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20121016074943/http://peregrinefund.org/docs/pdf/research-library/2007/2007-Johnson-hook-billed-kite.pdf</ref>  It was named in honor of American ornithologist Alexander Wilson.

==Description==

==Description==

==Threats==

==Threats==

The species is classified as "critically endangered" by the ICUN, due to heavy persecution based on a mistaken belief it hunts poultry, as well as heavy deforestation for logging and transformation of forest to farmland<ref>https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22728485/94988100#threats</ref>. Sightings of the bird are very rare, with three sightings during the 30 years prior to 1992<ref>http://globalraptors.org/grin/SpeciesExtended.asp?specID=8029&catID=2007</ref>, and after a last reliable sighting in 2001, the Cuban ornithologist Nils Pacheco succeeded in photographing one in 2009<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20121019060111/http://aba.org/birding/v42n1p22.pdf</ref>. Since 2006, employees of the Centro Oriental Biodiversidad y Ecosistemas, Santiago de Cuba and the Zoological Society for Species and Population Protection have made it a priority determine exact population numbers<ref>https://www.hawksaloft.com/cuba.html</ref>.

The species is classified as "critically endangered" by the ICUN, due to heavy persecution based on a mistaken belief it hunts poultry, as well as heavy deforestation for logging and transformation of forest to farmland.<ref>https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22728485/94988100#threats</ref>  Sightings of the bird are very rare, with three sightings during the 30 years prior to 1992,<ref>http://globalraptors.org/grin/SpeciesExtended.asp?specID=8029&catID=2007</ref> and after a last reliable sighting in 2001, the Cuban ornithologist Nils Pacheco succeeded in photographing one in 2009.<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20121019060111/http://aba.org/birding/v42n1p22.pdf</ref> Since 2006, employees of the Centro Oriental Biodiversidad y Ecosistemas, Santiago de Cuba and the Zoological Society for Species and Population Protection have made it a priority determine exact population numbers.<ref>https://www.hawksaloft.com/cuba.html</ref>

==References==

==References==

[[Category:Birds of Prey]][[Category:Honey Buzzards]]

[[Category:Birds of Prey]][[Category:Honey Buzzards]]