Booted eagle
Kingdom
Phylum
Class
Family
Genus
SPECIES
Hieraaetus pennatus

The booted eagle (Hieraaetus pennatus, also classified as Aquila pennata ) is a medium-sized mostly migratory bird of prey with a wide distribution in the Palearctic and southern Asia, wintering in the tropics of Africa and Asia, with a small, disjunct breeding population in south-western Africa. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae.

Appearance

The booted is a small eagle, comparable to the common buzzard in size though more eagle-like in shape. Males grow to about 510–770 g (1.12–1.70 lb) in weight, with females about 840–1,025 g (1.852–2.260 lb) with a length of 40 cm and a wingspan of 11–132 cm. There are two relatively distinct plumage forms. Pale birds are mainly light grey with a darker head and flight feathers. The other form has mid-brown plumage with dark grey flight feathers.

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The call is a shrill kli-kli-kli.

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Distribution

Geography

It breeds in southern Europe, North Africa and across Asia, and also in western South Africa and Namibia.The northern populations are migratory spending November to February in Sub-Saharan Africa and South Asia, while the small southern African populations is sedentary. This is a species of wooded, often hilly countryside with some open areas, it breeds in rocky, broken terrain but migrants will use almost any type of habitat other than dense forest.

Booted eagle habitat map
Booted eagle habitat map
Booted eagle
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Habits and Lifestyle

This eagle lays 1–2 eggs in a nest built from sticks and lined with green leaves in a tree or on a crag, or it takes over the disused nest of another large bird such as a black kite or grey heron. The female incubates the egg for around 45 days and is fed by the male, after hatching she guards the nest and the young while the male provides all the food. The chick fledges after 70–75 days.

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It hunts small mammals, reptiles and birds.

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Seasonal behavior
Bird's call

Diet and Nutrition

Population

References

1. Booted eagle Wikipedia article - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Booted_eagle
2. Booted eagle on The IUCN Red List site - https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22696092/93543946
3. Xeno-canto bird call - https://xeno-canto.org/689411

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