The Ornate Hawk-Eagle is a bird of prey from the tropical Americas. Like all eagles, it is in the family Accipitridae. This species is notable for its vivid colours, which differ markedly between adult and immature birds (photo from San Diego Zoo Global)
The red sunlight symbolizes the mass amounts of blood spilled during the war. It is not clear what war Poe is referring too, however at the time of the writing of this poem both the war of 1812 and the wars of Spanish American independence were under way.
