角雕

角雕
角雕

HARPY
NITR
巴西 2010

角雕原产于墨西哥南部至阿根廷北部的热带雨林 。如今这
种鸟类依然栖息在卡拉加斯国家森林的山谷中,与命运抗衡
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HARPY
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Message from the CEO
Commitment to sustainability is a key focus of Vale. By integrating our operational activities with
conservation and restoration of the ecosystems of the areas where we are settled into, we became
one of the Brazilian companies which contribute the most to the preservation of Brazil’s biodiversity.
Therefore, we are very proud of being part of such an important and noble project: the preservation of
the harpy eagle, one of the largest and most beautiful birds of prey in the world.
In partnership with Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio) and National Institute
for Amazonian Research (INPA) , during eight months Vale monitored two harpy nests found in the
Carajás National Forest . As a result, this book is coming out with pictures not published before and with
information on a species which is very important to the Brazilian biodiversity.
I hope the images which beautify the pages in this book help stimulate environmental awareness. I also
expect it to be evidence of our ability and obligation to preserve and protect our environment.
Roger Agnelli
President & CEO
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R788h Rosa, João Marcos
Harpia / João Marcos Rosa (fotos) . Textos de Frederico Drumond,
Tânia Sanaiotti, Roberto Azeredo. Belo Horizonte: Nitro, 2010.
144 p., principalmente fotografias (coloridas).
Texto em português, com tradução paralela em inglês.
ISBN: 978-85-62658-01-3
1. Harpia – Fauna silvestre. 2. Biodiversidade – Pesquisa –
Conservação. I. Título. II. Drumond, Frederico. III. Sanaiotti,
Tânia. IV. Azeredo, Roberto.
CDD: 598.2
CDU: 598.2
Informação bibliográfica deste livro, conforme a NBR 6023:2002 da
Associação Brasileira de Normas Técnicas (ABNT):
ROSA, João Marcos. Harpia. Belo Horizonte: Nitro, 2010. 144 p. ISBN
978-85-62658-01-3.

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ABOUT THe AUTHOR
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ACkNOwleDgeMeNTS
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卡拉加斯国家森林中的角雕
Frederico Drumond Martins
Chico Mendes生物多样性保护研究所环境分析师
卡拉加斯国家森林负责人

The Harpy Eagle in Carajás National Forest
Frederico Drumond Martins
Environmental Analyst for ICMBio - (Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conversation)
Head of the Carajás National Forest
It was with great honor that I accepted the invitation to participate in this book of wonderful pictures, which
crowns the work on the Harpy Eagle, one of the species I admire the most. First of all, I would like to extend
an invitation to the reader: Come visit the Carajás National Forest. It is a place of indescribable beauty,
immense diversity of plants and animals, and it is the landscape in most of the pictures in this book.
The Carajás National Forest is an area of 400 thousand hectares ( 988.4 acres ) of protected land
and significant sample of Amazonian biodiversity. The forest borders four other preserved areas as well
as an indigenous reserve. This mosaic of protected areas, within a one-million-hectare area of continuous
rainforest, has become the biggest remaining preserved ecosystem in southern and southeastern Pará.
For the great anthropogenic pressure in this part of Brazil, Carajás National Forest became shelter for
several species of the rare and endangered fauna and flora.
The Canopy Queen
Among the more than 600 bird species already catalogued in Carajás, one can find the largest Brazilian
eagle, the Harpy Eagle. The first accounts of seeing this species have been reported in the region since
the first time there was a published list of birds. Two nests have recently been discovered – both with
actively reproductive couples – indicating environmental protection. A preserved area is the primary
requirement for the couple’s choice of a growing tree that will provide them with a good view of the
whole forest. A good view will allow them to collect sticks for nest maintenance and mainly hunt in a defined
territory, ensuring the survival of future generations.
Studies of bioindicators, such as the Harpy Eagle, are fundamental tools for the management of a
conservation unit. They help interpret the environment and direct priority actions for achieving the ultimate
goal of any protected area: The conservation of their ecosystems. The finding and monitoring of these two
nests raise some questions, such as the need to restrict the use of nesting areas, ranging from protection
of the trees used for its construction to protection of the territory of the Harpy couples.
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Awareness and union
The beauty and grandeur of the Harpy Eagle promotes the interest in knowing and preserving our
biodiversity, thus making environmental education such an important tool to raise awareness of the
surrounding forests dwellers. The accounts and information acquired from monitoring the nests have
been shown in science fairs, academic lectures, and social works. These actions have raised awareness
among the forest’s neighbors of the importance of environmental protection.
The discovery of the first nest incited a strong partnership for the protection of these species.
The Chico Mendes Institute for Biodiversity Conservation (ICMBio) , paved the way to the Harpy Eagle
Protection Program by supporting the Carajás National Forest in becoming an important area in the
studies of the Harpy. The mining company Vale, an environmentally responsible company, has embraced
the program providing necessary resources for sharing research and visual records. The National
Institute for Amazonian Research (INPA), a specialized institution in the region, coordinates the activities
in Carajás, and with all its experience in this forest, is planting a seed that is already beginning to bear
fruits.
The second nest found further strengthened this partnership, encouraging each institution to reflect
on their role in controlling human predatory activities, particularly deforestation and replacement of
forests in landscapes that do not allow for the preservation of biodiversity. With the group work among
the institutions involved, this project will open up, with realism and maturity, new ways toward the
protection of the Harpy Eagle in Brazil.
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Despite its large size that can reach 2.2 m ( 7.2 feet ) the harpy
shows grace and skill when landing in the nest. Carajás, Pará
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In the small clearing amid the forest, the housing along the Águas
Claras River serves as one of the main bases for the researchers.
They fully utilize the structure, which was initially built to house
mineral exploration teams. Carajás, Pará

As seen from a helicopter, the Carajás National Forest seems to
be an impenetrable surface
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Detail of a nestling’s feather collected from under the tree where
the Águas Claras nest is located. Carajás, Pará
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The prey taken by the male will feed the female and the
one-month-old nestling. Until the nestling reaches two
months of age, the mother remains close to the nest and
only the male hunts. Carajás, Pará
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The female harpy weighs 10 kg (22 lbs.) and is about one-third
larger than the male. weighing no more than 6 kg ( 13.2 lbs. ),
the adult male is more agile and a better hunter

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Students at the Jorge Amado School in the vicinity of the Carajás
National Forest participate in a class about the harpy eagle.
Researchers use environmental education as a tool to have
the community sympathize with the project and become partners
in it. Carajás, Pará

After being caught in a farmer’s house by the ICMBio team, this
animal is going through a rehabilitation process at the Carajás
Zoobotanica Foundation. It is being prepared to carry a radio
transmitter once it returns to the wild
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The expansion of farming is one of the biggest threats to the
species. In the picture, one can see a pasture land moving towards
the Parauapebas River, a natural border of the Carajás National
Forest
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In this rarely documented moment, the female returns to its nest
carrying a primate in its claws. when the nestling is two months
old, it is more frequently fed; therefore, it quickly gains weight.
Carajás, Pará

The Majestic Harpy in Brazil
Tânia M. Sanaiotti
Researcher, National Institute of Amazonian Research(INPA)
Coordinator of the Harpy Conservation Program
The study about the harpy is more than anything an exciting lesson of patience. Owner of discrete
habits and often silent, this eagle is considered the strongest in the world because its claws can carry
prey which weighs as much as it does. Males weigh about 6kg (13.2 lbs.) and female about 10kg (22
lbs.). Unlike other birds, the harpy vocalizes only during mating periods and when feeding its nestlings.
Therefore, it is not so simple of a task to dentify its presence in the forest; thus almost always requiring
from the researcher few techniques used by its own object of study. Breath to climb trees over 40 meters
tall (131.2 feet ), physical strength ,and a refined sense of observation are some of the requirements to
spy on the harpy while it is majestically housed in the canopy, as well as to try and decipher some of
the mysteries of the bird whose wingspan exceeds two meters (6.5 feet).
It is from these tall trees with privileged views of the forest that the far-sighted and highly developed
hearing harpy, after detecting its prey, takes flight in high speed to attack with perspicacity. The ability
to rotate its head 180 degrees also contributes to the success of the hunt. Its target is primarily arboreal
herbivorous animals, such as sloths and monkeys. Other vertebrates which also inhabit the canopy,
such as porcupines, toucans and macaws, complement this predator’s diet. In Brazil, the harpy lives in
the Amazon and Atlantic rainforest and in the riparian forests of the Cerrado. In the riparian forests, as
well as in Pantanal, it flies over open green areas between mountains and rivers, feeding on armadillo,
deer, and coati.
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A Conservation Program
The first description of the harpy in the books was made by European naturalists in the eighteenth
century, when the species lived in most of the great forests from southern Mexico to northern Argentina.
Nearly three centuries of overexploitation of natural resources are between these publications and the
first Brazilian research and conservation project about the species. The discovery of a nest near Manaus
in 1999 prompted researchers from the National Institute of Amazonian Research (INPA) to turn their
attention to the species. After that, new nests were recorded, mapped and monitored by biologists and
climbers who form a multidisciplinary team in the “Programa de Conservação do Gavião Real”(Harpy
Eagle Conservation Program).
The project was named after one of the many names by which the eagle is known in the country.
The nickname “gavião-real” (royal eagle) is due to the impressive size and the feather crown on its
head. The scientific name Harpy harpyja refers to a Greek mythology being which is half eagle and
half woman. However, among the people of the forest there are many nicknames:“Uiraçu-falso” (fake
uiraçu), “gavião-preguiça” (sloth-hawk), and “ gavião-neném” (baby-hawk).
Over a decade, the work of the program was made possible only with the collaboration of other
good local observers. For the research of nests, INPA relies on the cooperation of various sources,
mostly proprietors or neighbors of lands where harpies were seen, and the precious help of the staff of
protected areas. Because of that, the strategy used in the Harpy Eagle Conservation Program is linked
mainly to the involvement of traditional communities of the surroundings of the protected areas, and to
the consolidation of partnerships with federal, state, and private institutions. These strategies facilitate
the disclosure of the importance of environmental preservation and of the successful results already
achieved.
This support network enhances the activities of the biologists of the project in different fronts. It
identifies the processes and variables that influence the distribution and abundance of the harpy in
the Brazilian forests, and studies the degree of loyalty from species to nesting areas. Quantitative and
qualitative analyses of collected preys are run in order to identify the animal’s diet.
With the use of technology, the monitoring of young eagles by telemetry is another field of research.
The tool helps determine the population dispersion, while analysis of population density contributes to a
more accurate definition of the status of the species’ preservation. A group of researchers in a laboratory
run genetic studies and collaborates with captive breeding programs of the species. Rehabilitation and
reintroduction might also contribute, in some cases, to the expansion of protected areas, and to add
value to existing forests in the surrounding areas.
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Threat
The presence of this bird of prey collaborates with the natural equilibrium in the ecosystems where
it lives. The harpy can control the number of individuals of prey species, hence the importance of its
preservation, as it is considered an “umbrella” in other species protection. Located at the top of the food
chain, the harpy has no predators other than men, which, historically, have been devastating their habitat.
The indiscriminate hunting and the use of harpy in traditional rites of some societies also contributed
to its endangerment according to the list of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN). It
is important to note that the conservation status of the harpy eagle in Brazil is controversial. The large
geographical extent of our country provides contrasts. For instance, the existence of widely preserved
forest areas in regions such as the Legal Amazon, where the population of the eagle still seems to be
preserved, contrasts with the great anthropogenic pressure in areas such as the states of Espírito Santo,
São Paulo and Rio Grande do Sul. These states, which are part of the Atlantic rainforest biome, officially
list the harpy as endangered.
There is still time to reverse the situation. For this, political, social, and economic measures based
on data collected by researchers who seek answers to environmental conservation are imperative. The
charisma of species such as the harpy eagle, considered by some indigenous people as the queen of
the forest, can form a large network for the maintenance of biodiversity and of men, who are, like any
other species, so dependent on this planet.
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In flooded forests, the “igarapés” form the routes that lead to
the nests . In this environment, canoes are the only possible
means of transportation. Manacapuru, Amazonas

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Biologist Benjamim da Luz analyzes the first harpy nest found
in Bahia. Private Nature Reserve estação Veracel, Porto Seguro

Part of forest land burned in Parintins, Amazonas. Collecting
data on the harpy’s habitat before the deforestation is one of the
major challenges of researchers
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Under the gaze of an interested riverside child, Tania Sanaiotti
observes a nest in Parintins, Amazonas

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Jaílson Santos from ICMBio and José eduardo Mantovani from
INPe track two harpies that carry radio transmitters in the Pau
Brazil National Park. eunápolis, Bahia

Researcher Alexander Blanco manipulating a nestling which,
while on the ground, will be measured, have samples collected,
and have a radio transmitter implanted . Imataca Forest Reserve,
Venezuela
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Although still having juvenile plumage, this nestling already
shows beneath its wings the standard gray and white colors
that identify this species. Parintins, Amazonas
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Observed by a nestling, the researcher looks for anchorage in
order to safely reach the nest. Parintins, Amazonas
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In a school by Cururu lake, biologist Tania Sanaiotti holds one
more lecture on the harpy eagle. Involving locals in the conservation
of the species is crucial to the project’s success. Manacapuru, Amazonas
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Men and Harpies
Roberto Azeredo
Researcher and President of CRAX Brazil-Society for Research on Reputation and Management of Wildlife
It has been thirty years since I first saw a harpy eagle in nature. I was wandering around Vila Rica,
northeast of Mato Grosso, in one of the most preserved places that I have ever been. Landing on a
branch on the dry bank of the river, the harpy eagle suspiciously gazed at me. Petrified and astonished,
I watched the grandeur and beauty of this bird. This image is still clearly engraved in my memory.
Years later, we have already been working with extremely positive results in breeding and reintroducing
into nature the red-billed curassow (Crax blumenbachii), the black-fronted piping-guan (Pipile jacutinga),
and the solitary tinamou (Tinamus solitarius) in remnant areas of the Atlantic rainforest. Due to the
success achieved by working with these endangered species, we set off for a new challenge: Develop
a similar program for the Harpya harpyja.
The first formation of a harpy couple in CRAX happened in 1998. To our delight, in April 1999, our
research succeeded in getting a nestling to be hatched and raised in captivity by its parents. The work
with reproduction succeeded and eleven more animals of this species were conceived in our research
center in Contagem, Minas Gerais. These numbers encouraged us to move to the following phase. In
mid-2006, in order to come up with an interdisciplinary project aiming at the reintroduction of harpies into
nature, we gathered a group of leading researchers involved with the species. The plan was approved
by IBAMA, but we didn’t get financial aid for its implementation.
Nowadays, I am sure Brazil is ready to channel empirical studies to a practical consequence: The
reintroduction of this animal into the wild. We can achieve the same success that the Spaniards achieved
with their Spanish imperial eagle (Aquila adalberti), and the United States with the iconic bald eagle
(Haliaeetus leucocephalus). There is no point in continuing the research if the ultimate goal is not the
closing of a cycle: The return of the species to the forests. If we follow the pioneering example of working
with the red-billed curassow, which starting from eight animals three hundred were reintroduced into
nature, in a few decades we will be able to see the harpy flying in the remnants of Atlantic rainforest.
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Recently, a great achievement in Brazil broke several taboos and reheated the debate on the subject.
For the first time an eagle after being in captivity for more than ten years was released and reintroduced
to its habitat. It was a female, captured nearly 13 years ago on a farm, in Bahia. Researches, rehabilitation,
and follow-up assessments considered the animal capable of returning to nature. The eagle then lifted its
first flight in August this year, on the private nature reserve (PRNP) “Estação Veracel” ,in Porto Seguro.
Constant monitoring of this animal free in the forest gives us important insights into believing that its
adaption and equilibrium with nature is possible, despite the long time away from its environment.
I dream of the day when people will know more about the harpy and will get involved in preservation
projects, not only for this eagle but for the entire ecosystem involved. Disclosing the beauty and importance
of the harpy as a flagship species for environmental protection is crucial to ecological training, as well as
to encouraging the search for new projects. I believe this bird of prey, because of its mythical legends
in Central and South America, can become an icon of environmental programs, as it did in Ecuador and
Panama. In both countries, the harpy is representative of biological diversity.
Keeping an eye on the future, the work developed in the Carajás National Forest is an example of local
community participation in the fight for preservation. This kind of action should be spread throughout
the country, and policies must encourage and support the development of projects about endangered
species. Initiatives of this magnitude do not have immediate results, but in the long run can contribute to
the improvement of the quality of life on the planet. I believe this beautiful publication is one more step
on this long journey.
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Falconry techniques are used to help manipulate animals in captivity,
preparing them for artificial insemination procedures. CRAX’s
goal is to reintroduce into nature the nestlings that are born.
Contagem, Minas gerais
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A never- seen - before image: the hatching of a harpy’s egg.
CRAX, Contagem, Minas Gerais

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In order to relate differences and consistencies between the harpy
populations in Amazon and in Atlantic rainforest, feather
fragments are collected for genetic studies of the species. Museum
of Natural Science, PUC Minas

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The black squirrel monkey (Saimiri vanzolinii) and other
arboreal mammals are also part of the harpy’s diet
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Bones of eaten preys are collected by researchers in the nests
and surrounding the respective trees. The analysis of these samples
is essential to identifying the harpy’s prey
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Still fragile and clumsy , the nestling shows its claws on its first
day of life. CRAX, Contagem, Minas Gerais
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During the warmest moments of the day, the mother’s shadow
is the only protection for the nestling. Carajás, Pará
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The name Harpia harpyja refers to greek mythology. It
designates a hybrid being: half woman, half eagle

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The various roads in the Carajás National Forest make the
work more dynamic and productive, as opposed to what
occurs in other research areas, where access to nests is only
through trails or rivers

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with its hallux up to 7cm long (2.75 in.) , a harpy’s claw is
bigger than that of a brown bear

This harpy , equipped with a transmitter, was reintroduced into
nature after 13 years in captivity. eunápolis, Bahia
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In order to increase nest observation time, the researchers’
routine begins early
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Benefitting from its wide wingspan, the harpy protrudes from
the top of a chestnut tree. Carajás, Pará

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The nestling’s first flight is normally within the branches
of the tree where its nest is located . Because they are lighter
than the females, males start these attempts when they are 5
months old, while females may take up to 7 months to leave
the nest. Carajás, Pará
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Learning to fly and hunt , the nestling exercises its claws
carrying a clump of roots. Carajás, Pará

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About the author
In the February 2006, an essay on harpies published in National Geographic Brazil was the first
publication about João Marcos Rosa’s valuable work on the largest bird of prey in the Americas. It now
culminates in the publication of this groundbreaking book.
The idea of documenting this extraordinary species, the Harpy harpyja, arose in 2004. When João
was introduced to the harpy in Parintins (AM), the sound of chainsaws next to the eagle’s nest warned
him: It was necessary to show that the bird, despite being apparently imposing, was valuable and
exposed to the folly of its habitat deforestation.
Early in his career, João served as assistant to Araquém Alcântara who has been for over 30 years
an important figure in environmental photography in Brazil. João inherited from his knowledge in using
natural light and certain poetic vein to compose pictures of wildlife. Nevertheless, in an underlying
aspect, João went further: the diversity of animals’ behavior. This book attests to that.
He traveled dozens of times to the Pará, Mato Grosso do Sul, Amazonas, Bahia and Venezuela - he
spent thousands of hours either on a plane, boat, canoe, ferry, helicopter, walking, or in a car. As done
for the National Geographic magazine, which preaches the total immersion of the photographer into the
environment of the species - whether it’s a polar bear or an ant - João had to literally get off the ground.
He learned to climb trees to reach nests. He faced an old fear of heights (he says it still exists) to see
the harpy’s life from its angle: the top.
In the Amazon and in the Atlantic rainforest, he captured unseen images of the harpies hunting,
showing their wingspan in full flights, protecting their nests, and feeding their nestlings. During his
journey to Parintins, he had a remarkable moment when, amazed at the beauty of the enormous animal
crossing the sky, he couldn’t trigger his camera. With trembling hands, a few seconds later he could
finally capture the image of the bird landing on the tree with a prey in its claws. Seeking a balance
between wildlife records and science, his work progressed toward recording the daily life of researchers
in the field, in laboratories, and the efforts of captive breeding.
The most special moments of his long journey have certainly happened in Carajás National Forest
(PA) in 2009. From a 35m tall platform ( 14.8 feet) built on a chestnut tree, he could follow the copulation
of a couple of harpies, the hatching of an egg, and the birth and development of the nestling. The history
of this bird of Carajás is symbolic. Fortunately, as João Marcos Rosa’s pictures show us, life is renewed
for the harpies in Brazil. This book is an encouragement for the preservation of the species.
Ronaldo Ribeiro
Senior Editor - National Geographic Brazil
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From a 131.2 feet high platform, photographer João Marcos
Rosa records life in a nest. Carajás, Pará. (Photo: Marcus Canuto /
SOS Falconiformes)
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Acknowledgements
巴伊亚(Bahia):Carlos André、Catão、Davi、Delgado、
Denise、 Eduarda、Fernando Brutto、Gil、Jaílson、
Lígia、Manoel、 Olândia、Rafael、Raquel、Sandro、
Sara、Sérgio e Valdemir
波尼多(Bonito):Adílio、 Alexandre、Faete e Nelson
Chemin
卡拉加斯(Carajás): Aline、Borges、Deuzimar、Duart、
Edna、Ezaú、Fernanda、Figueiredo、Fred Drumond、
Jardel、 Joãozinho、Josiel、Mesquita、Nívea、Nonato、
Roberto、Renilson e Seu Manoel
马纳卡普鲁(Manacapuru):Dunga、Peruano e comunidades
do Lago do Cururu
马瑙斯(Manaus):Adnes、Áureo、Benjamin、Capitão
Ferreira、Dica、Helena、Ivan、Júlio、Marcelo、Olivier
e Tânia
米纳斯吉纳斯( Minas Gerais): Bete 、Bruno、Cadu、
Canuto、Carol、Daniel、Eduardo、Geer
Scheres、Gislene、Gustavo、James Simpson、Leo、
Marcus、Nidin、Roberto Azeredo e Jorge。
巴西国家地理杂志( National Geographic Brasil):Cris
Catussatto、Cris Veit、Karen Pegorari、Matthew Shirts、
Ronaldo Ribeiro e Roberto Sakai
帕林廷斯(Parintins):Domingos、Seu Paraná e comunidades
da Vila Amazônia
淡水河谷(Vale):André、Alexandre Castilho、Eduardo、
Fernanda Magalhães、Jeovanis、João Carlos Magalhães、
José Carlos Martins、Karla Melo、Luiz Batista、Paulo
Bueno、Regina e Sérgio
委内瑞拉(Venezuela):Blás e família、Fernando Juaregui、
Pilar Alexander Blanco e Roger
协助单位 SUPPORT
CRAX Brasil - Sociedade de Pesquisa do Manejo e da
Reprodução da Fauna Silvestre
FUNPZA - Fundación Nacional de Parques y Acuarios de
Venezuela
ICMBio - Instituto Chico Mendes de Conservação da
Biodiversidade
INPA - Instituto Nacional de Pesquisas da Amazônia
National Geographic Brasil
Revista Globo Rural
SOS Falconiformes
Veracel