Crested Caracara

The unmistakable orange-red wax that runs from the nostrils to the forehead ends in a strong gray-silver beak. The black cap covers the upper part of the cheekbones, almost horizontally sharing the black eye which has a yellow orbital ring, the tip of the cap slightly stands up when there's wind and the caracara becomes crested! The neck and throat are light gray, discontinuous and horizontal black markings mark the chest and mantle, the belly turns black. The coverings are black, the tertiary and secondary remiges present slight white markings, these vary depending on the individuals, sometimes they are completely absent. The undertail coverts are white-gray with black stripes up to the rectrices whose tip is black.
In flight the Crested Caracara shows beautiful white primaries that end in a black hand, and the undertail covert will be clearly visible as white-gray blades striped with black.
The young have the same characteristics in terms of color distribution, but the black parts of the adult are brown in the young to darken with age, the adult's orange-red wax is initially gray for the youngster. Females are larger than males.
The Northern Caracara or Caracara of the North, ssp cheriway, is very close, the most visible difference being the almost complete absence of white markings on the tertiary and secondary remiges, the bird is blacker.