The Javan hawk-eagle (''Nisaetus bartelsi'') is a medium-sized, dark brown

raptor Raptor or RAPTOR may refer to: Animals The word "raptor" refers to several groups of bird-like dinosaurs which primarily capture and subdue/kill prey with their talons. * Raptor (bird) or bird of prey, a bird that primarily hunts and feeds on v ...

in the family Accipitridae. It is the national bird of

Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Guine ...

, where it is commonly referred to as

Garuda Garuda (Sanskrit: ; Pāli: ; Vedic Sanskrit: गरुळ Garuḷa) is a Hindu demigod and divine creature mentioned in the Hindu, Buddhist and Jain faiths. He is primarily depicted as the mount (''vahana'') of the Hindu god Vishnu. Garuda is a ...

, from the bird-like creatures in Hindu and Buddhist mythology. The scientific name commemorates the Bartels family, who discovered it.

Taxonomy

Because of the plumage variability of ''

Spizaetus ''Spizaetus'' is the typical hawk-eagle birds of prey genus found in the tropics of the Americas. It was however used to indicate a group of tropical eagles that included species occurring in southern and southeastern Asia and one representative ...

'' eagles, the Javan hawk-eagle was not recognised as a full species until 1953. It was previously placed in ''Spizaetus''. A multi-gene phylogeny of aquiline eagles (Aves: Accipitriformes) reveals extensive paraphyly at the genus level.

Description

The hawk-eagle is approximately long. Its head and neck are rufous and it is heavily barred black below. This majestic and intricately patterned eagle has a long, black crest on its head; this crest is held almost vertically and is tipped with white. The crown is black, topping a chestnut head and nape. The back and wings are dark brown, fading to a lighter brown tail which has wide cream stripes. The throat is creamy white with a black stripe, running to the whitish breast and underparts, which are heavily barred with chestnut. Juvenile birds are similar in colour, but have plainer underparts and a duller head. The sexes are similar.

Distribution and habitat

An Indonesian

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

, the Javan hawk-eagle occurs in humid tropical forests of

Java Java (; id, Jawa, ; jv, ꦗꦮ; su, ) is one of the Greater Sunda Islands in Indonesia. It is bordered by the Indian Ocean to the south and the Java Sea to the north. With a population of 151.6 million people, Java is the world's List ...

. Its range in

East Java East Java ( id, Jawa Timur) is a Provinces of Indonesia, province of Indonesia located in the easternmost hemisphere of Java island. It has a land border only with the province of Central Java to the west; the Java Sea and the Indian Ocean bord ...

includes Sempu Island,

Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park ( id, Taman Nasional Bromo Tengger Semeru; abbreviated as ) is a national park located in East Java, Indonesia, to the east of Malang and Lumajang, to the south of Pasuruan and Probolinggo, and to the south ...

, Meru Betiri National Park and

Alas Purwo National Park Alas Purwo National Park is situated on Blambangan Peninsula in the Banyuwangi Regency, at the southeastern tip of East Java province. The park is famous for its wild Banteng and surfing location at Grajagan Bay. The park's name means ''first ...

. It can also be seen in captivity in zoos like Kebun Binatang Bandung

Behaviour

The Javan hawk-eagle is believed to be

monogamous Monogamy ( ) is a form of Dyad (sociology), dyadic Intimate relationship, relationship in which an individual has only one Significant other, partner during their lifetime. Alternately, only one partner at any one time (Monogamy#Serial monogamy, ...

. The female usually lays one egg in a nest high on top of a forest tree. The diet consists mainly of birds, lizards,

fruit bat Megabats constitute the family Pteropodidae of the order Chiroptera (bats). They are also called fruit bats, Old World fruit bats, or—especially the genera ''Acerodon'' and ''Pteropus''—flying foxes. They are the only member of the sup ...

s and mammals.

Conservation

It is one of the rarest raptors. Due to ongoing habitat loss, small population size, limited range and hunting in some areas, it is evaluated as

Endangered An endangered species is a species that is very likely to become extinct in the near future, either worldwide or in a particular political jurisdiction. Endangered species may be at risk due to factors such as habitat loss, poaching and inva ...

on the

IUCN Red List The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) Red List of Threatened Species, also known as the IUCN Red List or Red Data Book, founded in 1964, is the world's most comprehensive inventory of the global conservation status of biol ...

of Threatened Species. It is listed on Appendix II of

CITES CITES (shorter name for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora, also known as the Washington Convention) is a multilateral treaty to protect endangered plants and animals from the threats of interna ...

. In February 2012, there were only around 325 pairs of Javan hawk-eagles living in the wild, mainly in Malangbong,

West Java West Java ( id, Jawa Barat, su, ᮏᮝ ᮊᮥᮜᮧᮔ᮪, romanized ''Jawa Kulon'') is a province of Indonesia on the western part of the island of Java, with its provincial capital in Bandung. West Java is bordered by the province of Banten ...

and some in

. In

Central Java Central Java ( id, Jawa Tengah) is a province of Indonesia, located in the middle of the island of Java. Its administrative capital is Semarang. It is bordered by West Java in the west, the Indian Ocean and the Special Region of Yogyakarta in t ...

Mount Merapi Mount Merapi, ''Gunung Merapi'' (literally Fire Mountain in Indonesian and Javanese), is an active stratovolcano located on the border between the province of Central Java and the Special Region of Yogyakarta, Indonesia. It is the most active ...

has been deforested by eruptions and

Dieng Plateau The Dieng Plateau is a marshy plateau that forms the floor of a caldera complex on the Dieng Volcanic Complex in Wonosobo and Banjarnegara Regencies, Central Java Province, Indonesia. Referred to as "Dieng" by Indonesians, it sits at above sea l ...

has been deforested by agriculture. The adaptation of the bird is very difficult due to their preference for Rasamala trees and Javanese rats for their diet. Ideally the population should be 1,450 pairs and without conservation the eagle is predicted to go extinct by 2025.

References

External links

BirdLife Species FactsheetRed Data Book
{{Taxonbar, from=Q795558

Javan hawk-eagle The Javan hawk-eagle (''Nisaetus bartelsi'') is a medium-sized, dark brown raptor in the family Accipitridae. It is the national bird of Indonesia, where it is commonly referred to as Garuda, from the bird-like creatures in Hindu and Buddhist myt ...

National symbols of Indonesia Birds of Java