Falconiformes (order)

Order containing 309 species in five families including hawks, falcons, eagles, the secretary bird, Old World vultures, and condors. They are characterized by typically have a sharply hooked beak with a cere (soft mass) housing the nostrils, long and fairly broad wings suitable for soaring flight, strong legs and feet with raptorial claws and an opposable hind claw, most are carnivorous, hunting by sight during the day or at twilight, and being exceptionally long-lived with low reproductive rates. They date from the Middle Eocene.