The martial eagle (''Polemaetus bellicosus'') is a large
eagle
Eagle is the common name for many large birds of prey of the family Accipitridae. Eagles belong to several groups of genera, some of which are closely related. Most of the 68 species of eagle are from Eurasia and Africa. Outside this area, just ...
native to
sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa is, geographically, the area and regions of the continent of Africa that lies south of the Sahara. These include West Africa, East Africa, Central Africa, and Southern Africa. Geopolitically, in addition to the List of sov ...
.
[Ferguson-Lees & Christie, ''Raptors of the World''. Houghton Mifflin Company (2001), .] It is the
only member of the
genus
Genus ( plural genera ) is a taxonomic rank used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In the hierarchy of biological classification, genus com ...
''Polemaetus''. A species of the booted eagle subfamily (
Aquilinae
The Aquilinae are a subfamily of eagles of the family Accipitridae. The general common name used for members of this subfamily is "booted eagle", although this is also the common name of a member of the subfamily.Lerner, H., Christidis, L., Gamau ...
), it has feathering over its
tarsus. One of the largest and most powerful species of booted eagle, it is a fairly opportunistic predator that varies its prey selection between
mammal
Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur or ...
s,
bird
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...
s and
reptile
Reptiles, as most commonly defined are the animals in the class Reptilia ( ), a paraphyletic grouping comprising all sauropsids except birds. Living reptiles comprise turtles, crocodilians, squamates (lizards and snakes) and rhynchocephalians ( ...
s. It is one of few eagle species known to hunt primarily from a high soar, by stooping on its quarry.
[Steyn, P. (1983). ''Birds of prey of southern Africa: Their identification and life histories''. Croom Helm, Beckenham (UK). 1983.] An inhabitant of
wooded belts of otherwise open
savanna
A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to reach the ground to ...
, this species has shown a precipitous decline in the last few centuries due to a variety of factors. The martial eagle is one of the most
persecuted bird species in the world. Due to its habit of taking
livestock
Livestock are the domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to provide labor and produce diversified products for consumption such as meat, eggs, milk, fur, leather, and wool. The term is sometimes used to refer solely to animals ...
and regionally valuable
game
A game is a structured form of play (activity), play, usually undertaken for enjoyment, entertainment or fun, and sometimes used as an educational tool. Many games are also considered to be work (such as professional players of spectator s ...
, local
farmer
A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer mig ...
s and
game wardens frequently seek to eliminate martial eagles, although the effect of eagles on this prey is almost certainly considerably exaggerated. Currently, the martial eagle is classified with the status of
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 ...
by the
IUCN
The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN; officially International Union for Conservation of Nature and Natural Resources) is an international organization working in the field of nature conservation and sustainable use of natu ...
.''
[Simmons, R.E. (2005). ''Martial Eagle Polemaetus bellicosus''. Roberts’ Birds of southern Africa, 7th edition. Hockey, PAR, Dean, WRJ and Ryan, PG (eds), 538-539.][Cloete, D. (2013). ''Investigating the decline of the Martial Eagle (Polemaetus bellicosus) in South Africa''. University of Cape Town.]''
Range
The martial eagle can be found in most of
sub-Saharan Africa
Sub-Saharan Africa is, geographically, the area and regions of the continent of Africa that lies south of the Sahara. These include West Africa, East Africa, Central Africa, and Southern Africa. Geopolitically, in addition to the List of sov ...
, wherever food is abundant and the environment favourable. With a total estimated distribution of about , it has a substantial distribution across Africa, giving it a somewhat broader range than other species there like the
crowned eagle
The crowned eagle, also known as the African crowned eagle or the crowned hawk-eagle (''Stephanoaetus coronatus''), is a large bird of prey found in sub-Saharan Africa; in Southern Africa it is restricted to eastern areas.Sinclair & Ryan (2003) ...
(''Stephanoaetus coronatus'') and the
Verreaux's eagle
Verreaux's eagle (''Aquila verreauxii'') is a large, mostly African, bird of prey. It is also called the black eagle, especially in southern Africa, not to be confused with the Indian black eagle (''Ictinaetus malayensis''), which lives far to t ...
(''Aquila verreauxii'').
[BirdLife International (2017) IUCN Red List for birds. Downloaded from]
/ref> Although never common, greater population densities do exist in southern Africa
Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number of ...
and in some parts of east Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa:
Due to the historical ...
. Martial eagles tend to be rare and irregular in west Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Maurit ...
but are known to reside in Senegal
Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...
, The Gambia
The Gambia,, ff, Gammbi, ar, غامبيا officially the Republic of The Gambia, is a country in West Africa. It is the smallest country within mainland AfricaHoare, Ben. (2002) ''The Kingfisher A-Z Encyclopedia'', Kingfisher Publicatio ...
and northern Guinea-Bissau
Guinea-Bissau ( ; pt, Guiné-Bissau; ff, italic=no, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫 𞤄𞤭𞤧𞤢𞥄𞤱𞤮, Gine-Bisaawo, script=Adlm; Mandinka: ''Gine-Bisawo''), officially the Republic of Guinea-Bissau ( pt, República da Guiné-Bissau, links=no ) ...
, southern Mali
Mali (; ), officially the Republic of Mali,, , ff, 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞥆𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 𞤃𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭, Renndaandi Maali, italics=no, ar, جمهورية مالي, Jumhūriyyāt Mālī is a landlocked country in West Africa. Mali ...
and the northern portions of Ivory Coast
Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital is Yamoussoukro, in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre is ...
and Ghana
Ghana (; tw, Gaana, ee, Gana), officially the Republic of Ghana, is a country in West Africa. It abuts the Gulf of Guinea and the Atlantic Ocean to the south, sharing borders with Ivory Coast in the west, Burkina Faso in the north, and To ...
. From southern Niger
)
, official_languages =
, languages_type = National languages[Nigeria
Nigeria ( ), , ig, Naìjíríyà, yo, Nàìjíríà, pcm, Naijá , ff, Naajeeriya, kcg, Naijeriya officially the Federal Republic of Nigeria, is a country in West Africa. It is situated between the Sahel to the north and the Gulf o ...](_blank)
the species is distributed spottily through Chad
Chad (; ar, تشاد , ; french: Tchad, ), officially the Republic of Chad, '; ) is a landlocked country at the crossroads of North and Central Africa. It is bordered by Libya to the north, Sudan to the east, the Central African Republic ...
, Sudan
Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...
and the Central African Republic
The Central African Republic (CAR; ; , RCA; , or , ) is a landlocked country in Central Africa. It is bordered by Chad to the north, Sudan to the northeast, South Sudan to the southeast, the DR Congo to the south, the Republic of th ...
as well as the northern, eastern, and southern portions of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...
. In east Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa:
Due to the historical ...
, they range from Somaliland
Somaliland,; ar, صوماليلاند ', ' officially the Republic of Somaliland,, ar, جمهورية صوماليلاند, link=no ''Jumhūrīyat Ṣūmālīlānd'' is a ''de facto'' sovereign state in the Horn of Africa, still conside ...
and Ethiopia
Ethiopia, , om, Itiyoophiyaa, so, Itoobiya, ti, ኢትዮጵያ, Ítiyop'iya, aa, Itiyoppiya officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country in the Horn of Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the ...
more or less continuously south through Kenya
)
, national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
, ...
, Uganda
}), is a landlocked country in East Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territor ...
, Tanzania
Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...
and in southern Africa
Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number of ...
from Angola
, national_anthem = " Angola Avante"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, capital = Luanda
, religion =
, religion_year = 2020
, religion_ref =
, coordina ...
, Zambia
Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most cent ...
, Malawi
Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast ...
and southern Mozambique
Mozambique (), officially the Republic of Mozambique ( pt, Moçambique or , ; ny, Mozambiki; sw, Msumbiji; ts, Muzambhiki), is a country located in southeastern Africa bordered by the Indian Ocean to the east, Tanzania to the north, Malawi ...
to South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
.[ Some of the larger remaining populations are known to persist in ]Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...
and South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
. Generally, these birds are more abundant in protected areas such as Kruger National Park
Kruger National Park is a South African National Park and one of the largest game reserves in Africa. It covers an area of in the provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga in northeastern South Africa, and extends from north to south and from ea ...
and Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park
Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park is a large wildlife preserve and conservation area in southern Africa.
The park straddles the border between South Africa and Botswana and comprises two adjoining national parks:
* Kalahari Gemsbok National Park in S ...
in South Africa, or Etosha National Park
Etosha National Park is a national park in northwestern Namibia and one of the largest national parks in Africa. It was proclaimed a game reserve in March 1907 in Ordinance 88 by the Governor of German South West Africa, Friedrich von Lindequist. ...
in Namibia
Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...
.[Boshoff, A.F. ''Martial eagle Polemaetus bellicosus''. In: Harrison JA, Allan DG, Underhill LG, Herremanns M, Tree AJ, Parker V, Brown CJ, editors. The atlas of southern African Birds, vol 1. (1997). Randburg: BirdLife South Africa. 192-3.]
Taxonomy
The Accipitridae
The Accipitridae is one of the three families within the order Accipitriformes, and is a family of small to large birds with strongly hooked bills and variable morphology based on diet. They feed on a range of prey items from insects to medium-s ...
family (hereafter accipitrids) is by far the most diverse family of diurnal raptors in the world, with more than 230 currently accepted species.[Kemp, A.C. (1994). ''Martial Eagle (Polemaetus bellicosus)''. Pp. 200-201 in: del Hoyo, Elliott & Sargatal. eds. (1994). Handbook of the Birds of the World, vol. 2. ] As a member of the booted eagle subfamily, Aquilinae, the martial eagle is one of the roughly 15% of extant species in the family to have feathers covering its legs.[ This helps distinguish these species from other eagles and raptors, as they are present even in tropical species such as the martial eagle.][Brown, L. & Amadon, D. (1986). ''Eagles, Hawks and Falcons of the World''. The Wellfleet Press. .] Under current classifications, booted eagles consist of approximately 38 living species that are distributed in every continent inhabited by the accipitrids, which excludes only the continent of Antarctica
Antarctica () is Earth's southernmost and least-populated continent. Situated almost entirely south of the Antarctic Circle and surrounded by the Southern Ocean, it contains the geographic South Pole. Antarctica is the fifth-largest contine ...
. Just under half of the living species of booted eagle are found in Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
.[Amadon, D. (1982). ''The genera of booted eagles: Aquila and relatives''. Journal of the Yamashina Institute for Ornithology, 14(2-3), 108-121.][Lerner, H., Christidis, L., Gamauf, A., Griffiths, C., Haring, E., Huddleston, C.J., Kabra, S., Kocum, A., Krosby, M., Kvaloy, K., Mindell, D., Rasmussen, P., Rov, N., Wadleigh, R., Wink, M. & Gjershaug, J.O. (2017). ''Phylogeny and new taxonomy of the Booted Eagles (Accipitriformes: Aquilinae)''. Zootaxa, 4216(4), 301-320.] Studies have been conducted on the mitochondrial DNA of most booted eagle species, including the martial eagle, to gain insight on how the subfamily is ordered and which species bear relation to one another. DNA testing in the 1980s indicated the martial eagle was a specialized off-shoot of the small-bodied ''Hieraaetus
The genus ''Hieraaetus'', sometimes known as small eagles or hawk-eagles, denotes a group of smallish eagles usually placed in the accipitrid subfamilies Buteoninae or Aquilinae.
They are medium-sized birds of prey inhabiting Europe, Asia, ...
'' eagles, and one study went so far as to advocate that the martial eagle be included in the genus.[ However, more modern and comprehensive genetic testing has shown that the martial eagle is distinct from other living booted eagles and diverged from other extant genera several million years ago.][Lerner, H.R., & Mindell, D.P. (2005). ''Phylogeny of eagles, Old World vultures, and other Accipitridae based on nuclear and mitochondrial DNA''. Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution, 37(2), 327-346.] Genetically, the martial eagle fell between two other species in monotypical genera, the Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
n long-crested eagle
The long-crested eagle (''Lophaetus occipitalis'') is an African bird of prey. Like all eagles, it is in the family Accipitridae. It is currently placed in a monotypic genus ''Lophaetus''. It is characterized by the feathers making up the shaggy ...
(''Lophaetus occipitalis'') and the Asia
Asia (, ) is one of the world's most notable geographical regions, which is either considered a continent in its own right or a subcontinent of Eurasia, which shares the continental landmass of Afro-Eurasia with Africa. Asia covers an area ...
n rufous-bellied eagle (''Lophotriorchis kienerii''), that similarly diverged long ago from other modern species. Given the disparity of this species’ unique morphology and that the two aforementioned most closely related living species are only about as large as the bigger buzzard
Buzzard is the common name of several species of birds of prey.
''Buteo'' species
* Archer's buzzard (''Buteo archeri'')
* Augur buzzard (''Buteo augur'')
* Broad-winged hawk (''Buteo platypterus'')
* Common buzzard (''Buteo buteo'')
* Eastern ...
s, the unique heritage of the martial eagle is evident.[
There are no subspecies of martial eagle, and the species varies little in appearance and genetic diversity across its distribution.]
Description
The martial eagle is a very large eagle. In total length, it can range from , with an average of approximately .[Redman, N., Stevenson, T., & Fanshawe, J. (2010). ''Birds of the Horn of Africa: Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti, Somalia and Socotra.'' Bloomsbury Publishing.] Its total length – in comparison to its wingspan – is restricted by its relatively short tail. Nonetheless, it appears to be the sixth or seventh longest extant eagle species.[ The ]wingspan
The wingspan (or just span) of a bird or an airplane is the distance from one wingtip to the other wingtip. For example, the Boeing 777–200 has a wingspan of , and a wandering albatross (''Diomedea exulans'') caught in 1965 had a wingspan of ...
of martial eagles can range from .[ Wingspans of as much as have been reported but may be unsubstantiated. Average wingspans have been claimed of and for the species, however ten measured martial eagles in the wild were found to average in wingspan. Thus, the martial eagle appears to average fourth in wingspan among living eagles, behind only the Steller's sea-eagle (''Haliaeetus pelagicus''), the ]white-tailed eagle
The white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla'') is a very large species of sea eagle widely distributed across temperate Eurasia. Like all eagles, it is a member of the family Accipitridae (or accipitrids) which includes other diurnal raptors ...
(''Haliaeetus albicilla'') and the wedge-tailed eagle
The wedge-tailed eagle (''Aquila audax'') is the largest bird of prey in the continent of Australia. It is also found in southern New Guinea to the north and is distributed as far south as the state of Tasmania. Adults of this species have lon ...
(''Aquila audax''), in roughly that order.[Mendelsohn, J.M., Kemp, A.C., Biggs, H.C., Biggs, R., & Brown, C.J. (1989). ''Wing areas, wing loadings and wing spans of 66 species of African raptors''. Ostrich, 60(1), 35-42.][Saito, K. (2009). ''Lead poisoning of Steller’s Sea-Eagle (Haliaeetus pelagicus) and White-tailed Eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla) caused by the ingestion of lead bullets and slugs''. Hokkaido Japan. In RT Watson, M. Fuller, M. Pokras, and WG Hunt (Eds.). Ingestion of Lead from Spent Ammunition: Implications for Wildlife and Humans. The Peregrine Fund, Boise, Idaho, USA.] For a species that is fairly homogeneous in its genetic make-up, the body mass of martial eagles is surprisingly variable. To some extent, the variation of body masses in the species is attributable to considerable reverse sexual dimorphism as well as varying environmental conditions of various eagle populations.[Biggs, H.C., Kemp, A.C., Mendelsohn, H.P. & Mendelsohn, J.M. (1979). ''Weights of South African Raptors and Owls''. Durban Museum Novitates, 12: 73-81.] Unsexed martial eagles from various studies have been found to have weighed an average of in 17 birds, in 20 birds and in 20 birds while the average weight of martial eagles shot by game wardens in the early 20th century in South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
was listed as .[Bright, J.A., Marugán-Lobón, J., Cobb, S.N., & Rayfield, E.J. (2016). ''The shapes of bird beaks are highly controlled by nondietary factors''. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, 113(19), 5352-5357.][Stevenson-Hamilton, J. (1954). ''Wild life in South Africa''. Cassell and Co., London.] In weight range, the martial eagle broadly overlaps in size with the golden eagle
The golden eagle (''Aquila chrysaetos'') is a bird of prey living in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the most widely distributed species of eagle. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. They are one of the best-known bird of p ...
(''Aquila chrysaetos'') and Verreaux's eagle
Verreaux's eagle (''Aquila verreauxii'') is a large, mostly African, bird of prey. It is also called the black eagle, especially in southern Africa, not to be confused with the Indian black eagle (''Ictinaetus malayensis''), which lives far to t ...
(and is even exceeded by them in maximum known body mass). Based on numerous studies, the martial eagle appear to average mildly heavier than the Verreaux's eagle but (derived from the globally combined body mass of its various races), the mean body masses of golden and martial eagles are identical at approximately . The renders the golden and martial eagles as tied as the largest African eagles (by body mass but not in total length or wingspan, in which the martial bests the golden), as well as the heaviest two species of booted eagle in the world and as tied as the sixth heaviest eagles in the world, after the three largest species of sea eagle
A sea eagle or fish eagle (also called erne or ern, mostly in reference to the white-tailed eagle) is any of the birds of prey in the genus ''Haliaeetus'' in the bird of prey family Accipitridae.
Taxonomy and evolution
The genus ''Haliaeetus'' ...
( Steller's being the heaviest extant, the others ranking 4th and 5th), the harpy eagle
The harpy eagle (''Harpia harpyja'') is a neotropical species of eagle. It is also called the American harpy eagle to distinguish it from the Papuan eagle, which is sometimes known as the New Guinea harpy eagle or Papuan harpy eagle. It is the ...
(''Harpia harpyja'') and the Philippine eagle
The Philippine eagle (''Pithecophaga jefferyi''), also known as the monkey-eating eagle or great Philippine eagle, is a critically endangered species of eagle of the family Accipitridae which is endemic to forests in the Philippines. It has br ...
(''Pithecophaga jefferyi''). The longest African eagle (and second longest booted eagle after the wedge-tailed eagle
The wedge-tailed eagle (''Aquila audax'') is the largest bird of prey in the continent of Australia. It is also found in southern New Guinea to the north and is distributed as far south as the state of Tasmania. Adults of this species have lon ...
(''Aquila audax'')) is the crowned eagle
The crowned eagle, also known as the African crowned eagle or the crowned hawk-eagle (''Stephanoaetus coronatus''), is a large bird of prey found in sub-Saharan Africa; in Southern Africa it is restricted to eastern areas.Sinclair & Ryan (2003) ...
by virtue of its relatively longer tail, as its body weight is slightly less than these three heaviest booted eagle species.[
]
Sexual dimorphism
Martial eagles are highly sexually dimorphic. While females average about 10% larger in linear dimension, in body mass, the sexual dimorphism of martial eagles is more pronounced. Males reportedly can weigh from . Seven males in southern Africa averaged and five in another dataset averaged .[Musindo, P.T. (2012). ''Morphological variation in bills and claws in relation to Prey type in Southern African Birds of Prey (Orders Falconiformes and Strigiformes)''. Thesis, University of Zimbabwe.][van Eeden, R., Whitfield, D.P., Botha, A., & Amar, A. (2017). ''Ranging behaviour and habitat preferences of the Martial Eagle: Implications for the conservation of a declining apex predator''. PLoS ONE, 12(3), e0173956.] Twelve adult males in Maasai Mara, Kenya
)
, national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
, ...
averaged .[Hatfield, R. S. (2018). ''Diet and Space Use of the Martial Eagle (Polemaetus bellicosus) in the Maasai Mara Region of Kenya''. Theses and Dissertations--Forestry and Natural Resources. 44.] Meanwhile, females can weigh from . In southern Africa, seven females averaging .[ Elsewhere, a claim was made of an average of almost certainly describes a sample entirely of female specimens. In the Maasai Mara, 7 females averaged .][ Reports of males weighing as much as and females weighing as little as are known but may possibly represent individual eagles misidentified by sex, which is reportedly not infrequent due to mistakes in the field.][Smeenk, C. (1974). ''Comparative-ecological studies of some East African birds of prey''. Ardea 62 (1-2) : 1-97.] Thus the dimorphism by weight is roughly 36% in favor of the female, which is unusually out-of-sync with the linear differences between the sexes. For example, the greater spotted eagle
The greater spotted eagle (''Clanga clanga''), occasionally called the spotted eagle, is a large bird of prey. Like all typical eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. Its feathered legs indicate it is a member of the subfamily Aquil ...
(''Clanga clanga''), the most sexually dimorphic booted eagle overall with a linear difference between the sexes of 20%, has around the same level of sexual dimorphism by body mass as the martial eagle which show about half as much linear dimorphism.[ In standard measurements, male martial eagles measure in wing chord size, in ]tail
The tail is the section at the rear end of certain kinds of animals’ bodies; in general, the term refers to a distinct, flexible appendage to the torso. It is the part of the body that corresponds roughly to the sacrum and coccyx in mammals, r ...
length and in tarsus length. Meanwhile, females measure in wing chord, in tail length and tarsal length.[ Overall, the bulk and much more massive proportions of females, which include more robust feet and longer tarsi, may at times allow experienced observers to sex lone birds in the wild.][
]
Colouring and field identification
The adult's plumage
Plumage ( "feather") is a layer of feathers that covers a bird and the pattern, colour, and arrangement of those feathers. The pattern and colours of plumage differ between species and subspecies and may vary with age classes. Within species, ...
consists of dark brown coloration on the upperparts, head and upper chest, with an occasional slightly lighter edging to these feathers. The dark feathers can appear grayish, blackish or even plum-colored depending on lighting conditions. The body underparts are feathered white with sparse but conspicuous blackish-brown spotting. The underwing coverts are dark brown, with the remiges being pale streaked with black, overall imparting the wings of adults a dark look. The underside of the tail has similar barring as the remiges while the upperside is the same uniform brown as the back and upperwing coverts. The eyes of mature martial eagles are rich yellow, while the cere
The beak, bill, or rostrum is an external anatomical structure found mostly in birds, but also in turtles, non-avian dinosaurs and a few mammals. A beak is used for eating, preening, manipulating objects, killing prey, fighting, probing for food ...
and large feet pale greenish and the talons black. Martial eagles have a short erectile crest, which is typically neither prominent nor flared (unlike that of the crowned eagle
The crowned eagle, also known as the African crowned eagle or the crowned hawk-eagle (''Stephanoaetus coronatus''), is a large bird of prey found in sub-Saharan Africa; in Southern Africa it is restricted to eastern areas.Sinclair & Ryan (2003) ...
) and generally appears as an angular back to a seemingly flat head. This species often perches in a quite upright position, with its long wings completely covering the tail, causing it be described as “standing” rather than “sitting” on a branch when perched. In flight, martial eagles bear long broad wings with relatively narrow rounded tips that can appear pointed at times depending on how the eagle is holding its wings. It is capable of flexible beats with gliding on flattish wings, or slightly raised in a dihedral. This species often spends a large portion of the day on the wing, more so than probably any other African eagles, and often at a great height.[ Juvenile martial eagles are conspicuously distinct in plumage with a pearly gray colour above with considerable white edging, as well as a speckled grey effect on crown and hind neck. The entire underside is conspicuously white. The wing coverts of juveniles are mottled grey-brown and white, with patterns of bars on primaries and tail that are similar to adult but lighter and greyer. In the fourth or fifth years, a very gradual increase to brownish feather speckling is noted but the back and crown remain a fairly pale grey. At this age, there may be increasing spots on throat and chest which coalesce into a gorget and some spots on abdomen may variably manifest as well. The eyes of juveniles are dark brown. This species reaches adult plumage by its seventh year with the transition to adult plumage happening quite rapidly after many years in a little-changing juvenile plumage.][
There are few serious identification challenges for the species. The black-chested snake eagle (''Circaetus pectoralis'') is similar in overall colouring (despite its name it is brown on the chest and the back, being no darker than the adult martial eagle) to martial eagles but is markedly smaller, with a more prominent, rounded head with large eyes, plain, spotless abdomen, bare and whitish legs. In flight, the profile of the snake eagle is quite different, with nearly white (rather than dark brown) flight feathers and much smaller, narrower wings and a relatively larger tail. For juveniles, the main source for potential confusion is the juvenile ]crowned eagle
The crowned eagle, also known as the African crowned eagle or the crowned hawk-eagle (''Stephanoaetus coronatus''), is a large bird of prey found in sub-Saharan Africa; in Southern Africa it is restricted to eastern areas.Sinclair & Ryan (2003) ...
, which also regularly perches in an erect position. The proportions of crowned eagles are quite distinct from martial eagles as they have much shorter wings and a distinctly longer tail. The juvenile crowned eagle has a whiter head, more scaled back, and spotted thighs and legs lacking in the martial eagle. Beyond their distinct flight profile by wing and tail proportions, crowned eagles have whiter and more obviously banded flight-feathers and tail. Other large immature eagles in Africa tend to be much darker and more heavily marked both above and below than martial eagles.[
]
Predatory physiology
Martial eagles have been noted as remarkable for their extremely keen eyesight (3.0–3.6 times human acuity), partly due to their eye being nearly as large as a human's eye. Due to this power, they can spot potential prey from a great distance, having been known to be able to spot prey from as far as away.[ Their visual acuity may rival some eagles from the genus '' Aquila'' and some of the larger falcons as the greatest of all diurnal raptors. The talons of martial eagles are impressive and can approach the size, especially in mature females, of those of the crowned eagle despite their slenderer metatarsus and toes compared to the crowned species. Accipitrids usually kill their prey with an elongated, sharp hind toe claw, which is referred to as the hallux claw and is reliably the largest talon in members of the accipitrid family. The average length of the hallux claw in unsexed martial eagles from ]Tsavo East National Park
Tsavo East National Park is one of the oldest and largest parks in Kenya at 13,747 square kilometres. Situated in a semi-arid area previously known as the Taru Desert it opened in April 1948, and is located near the town of Voi in the Taita- ...
, Kenya
)
, national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
, ...
was found to be .[ In comparison, the average hallux claw of a large sample of golden eagles was similar at . Meanwhile, the three largest clawed modern eagles were found to measure as such: in small samples, the ]Philippine eagle
The Philippine eagle (''Pithecophaga jefferyi''), also known as the monkey-eating eagle or great Philippine eagle, is a critically endangered species of eagle of the family Accipitridae which is endemic to forests in the Philippines. It has br ...
and crowned eagle had an average hallux claw length of and , respectively, and harpy eagle
The harpy eagle (''Harpia harpyja'') is a neotropical species of eagle. It is also called the American harpy eagle to distinguish it from the Papuan eagle, which is sometimes known as the New Guinea harpy eagle or Papuan harpy eagle. It is the ...
s have an average hallux claw length of approximately . A further sample of martial eagles averaged in 6 males and in 7 females, with the median between the sexes being , these being the largest talons of all booted eagles behind only the crowned eagle. The inner claw on the front of the foot of the martial eagle is especially sizeable proportional to other extremities and unusually can approach, if not reach, the same size as the hallux claw. This inner claw was found to average , in comparison to that of the crowned eagle which measures .[ The tarsus is quite long in martial eagles, the fourth longest of any living eagle and the longest of any booted eagle species, seemingly an adaptation to prey capture in long grass, including potentially dangerous prey.][ The ]bill
Bill(s) may refer to:
Common meanings
* Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States)
* Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature
* Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer
* Bill, a bird or animal's beak
Plac ...
is of medium size relative to that of other large eagles, with a mean culmen length from Tsavo East of . The bill is larger than the average bill of the large members of the genus '' Aquila'' but is notably smaller than those of the large species of sea eagle
A sea eagle or fish eagle (also called erne or ern, mostly in reference to the white-tailed eagle) is any of the birds of prey in the genus ''Haliaeetus'' in the bird of prey family Accipitridae.
Taxonomy and evolution
The genus ''Haliaeetus'' ...
and the Philippine eagle
The Philippine eagle (''Pithecophaga jefferyi''), also known as the monkey-eating eagle or great Philippine eagle, is a critically endangered species of eagle of the family Accipitridae which is endemic to forests in the Philippines. It has br ...
.[ The ]gape
The beak, bill, or rostrum is an external anatomical structure found mostly in birds, but also in turtles, non-avian dinosaurs and a few mammals. A beak is used for eating, preening, manipulating objects, killing prey, fighting, probing for food ...
size of martial eagles is relatively large, however, being proportionally larger than in other booted eagle species behind (albeit considerably behind) the Indian spotted eagle
The Indian spotted eagle (''Clanga hastata'') is a large bird of prey native to South Asia. Like all typical eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. The typical eagles are often united with the buteos, sea eagles and other more heavyset Ac ...
(''Clanga hastata'') and the steppe eagle
The steppe eagle (''Aquila nipalensis'') is a large bird of prey. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. The steppe eagle's well-feathered legs illustrate it to be a member of the subfamily Aquilinae, also known as the "booted ...
(''Aquila nipalensis'') in relative gape size, indicating a relative specialization towards swallowing large prey whole.
Voice
The martial eagle is a weak and infrequent vocaliser. Little vocal activity has been reported even during the breeding season. The recorded contact call between pair-members consists of the birds, usually when perched, letting out a low mellow whistle, '. More or less the same vocalisation is known to have been uttered by females when male brings food and repeated mildly by large begging young. During territorial aerial display and sometimes when perched, adults may utter a loud, trilling '. The territorial call may be heard from some distance. Recent fledglings also at times make this call. A soft ' may be heard, made by pairs around their nest, perhaps being a mutual contact call.[ In comparison, the ]crowned eagle
The crowned eagle, also known as the African crowned eagle or the crowned hawk-eagle (''Stephanoaetus coronatus''), is a large bird of prey found in sub-Saharan Africa; in Southern Africa it is restricted to eastern areas.Sinclair & Ryan (2003) ...
is highly vocal especially in the context of breeding.[
]
Habitat
The martial eagle is to some degree adaptable to varied habitat
In ecology, the term habitat summarises the array of resources, physical and biotic factors that are present in an area, such as to support the survival and reproduction of a particular species. A species habitat can be seen as the physical ...
s but shows an overall preference for open woods and woodland edge
A woodland edge or forest edge is the transition zone (ecotone) from an area of woodland or forest to fields or other open spaces. Certain species of plants and animals are adapted to the forest edge, and these species are often more familiar to hu ...
s, wooded savannah
A savanna or savannah is a mixed woodland-grassland (i.e. grassy woodland) ecosystem characterised by the trees being sufficiently widely spaced so that the Canopy (forest), canopy does not close. The open canopy allows sufficient light to rea ...
and thornbush habitats. The martial eagle has been recorded at elevations of up to but is not a true mountain dwelling species and resident eagles do not usually exceed an elevation of .[ These eagles also avoid closed-canopy forests and hyper-arid ]desert
A desert is a barren area of landscape where little precipitation occurs and, consequently, living conditions are hostile for plant and animal life. The lack of vegetation exposes the unprotected surface of the ground to denudation. About on ...
.[ As such it is mostly absent from ]Guinean
Guinea ( ),, fuf, 𞤘𞤭𞤲𞤫, italic=no, Gine, wo, Gine, nqo, ߖߌ߬ߣߍ߫, bm, Gine officially the Republic of Guinea (french: République de Guinée), is a coastal country in West Africa. It borders the Atlantic Ocean to the we ...
and Congolian forests
The Congolian rainforests are a broad belt of lowland tropical moist broadleaf forests which extend across the basin of the Congo River and its tributaries in Central Africa. They are the only major rainforests which absorb more carbon than they ...
, despite the species’ requirement for large trees for nesting purposes. It is shown that martial eagles can inhabit forests locally in areas where openings occur.[ For example, in a bird atlas for the country of ]Kenya
)
, national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
, ...
, perhaps surprisingly, 88% of martial eagles were found to reside in well-wooded areas and they occurred in areas where annual rainfall exceeded . In southern Africa, they have adapted to seemingly more open habitats than elsewhere in their range, such as semi-desert and open savanna with scattered trees, wooded hillocks and, as a recent adaptation, around pylons
Pylon may refer to:
Structures and boundaries
* Pylon (architecture), the gateway to the inner part of an Ancient Egyptian temple or Christian cathedral
* Pylon, a support tower structure for suspension bridges or highways
* Pylon, an orange mar ...
. In the desert areas of Namibia, they utilize ephemeral rivers that flow occasionally and allow large trees to grow.[ They usually seem to prefer desolate or protected areas. In the ]Karoo
The Karoo ( ; from the Afrikaans borrowing of the South Khoekhoe !Orakobab or Khoemana word ''ǃ’Aukarob'' "Hardveld") is a semi-desert natural region of South Africa. No exact definition of what constitutes the Karoo is available, so its ext ...
of South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
, they consistently avoid areas with moderate to heavy cultivation or with heavier or more consistent winter rainfall.[Machange, R.W., Jenkins, A.R., & Navarro, R.A. (2005). ''Eagles as indicators of ecosystem health: Is the distribution of Martial Eagle nests in the Karoo, South Africa, influenced by variations in land-use and rangeland quality?'' Journal of Arid Environments, 63(1), 223-243.] One study on the occurrence of diurnal raptors in protected areas against unprotected areas found that martial eagle detection was nearly twice as frequent in protected area
Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...
s during the dry season
The dry season is a yearly period of low rainfall, especially in the tropics. The weather in the tropics is dominated by the tropical rain belt, which moves from the northern to the southern tropics and back over the course of the year. The te ...
and more than three times as frequent during the wet season than in unprotected areas.
Behaviour
The martial eagle spends an exceptional amount of the time in the air, often soaring about hill slopes high enough that binoculars are often needed to perceive them. When not breeding, both mature eagles from a breeding pair may be found roosting on their own in some prominent tree up to several miles from their nesting haunt, probably hunting for several days in one area, until viable prey resources are exhausted, and then moving on to another area.[ However, martial eagles, especially adult birds, are typically devoted to less disturbed areas, both due to these typically offering more extensive prey selection and their apparent dislike for a considerable human presence.][ Martial eagles tend to be very solitary and are not known to tolerate others of the own species in the area outside of the pair during the breeding season. In general this species is more shy towards humans than other big eagles of Africa, but may be seen passing over populated country at times.][ The most frequently seen type of martial eagle away from traditional habitats are presumed nomadic subadults. One individual that was ringed as subadult was recovered 5.5 years later away from the initial banding site. Another martial eagle ringed as a nestling was found to have moved in 11 months.][
]
Dietary biology
The martial eagle is one of the world's most powerful avian predators. Due to both its underside spotting and ferocious efficiency as a predator it is sometimes nicknamed “the leopard of the air”. The martial eagle is an apex predator
An apex predator, also known as a top predator, is a predator at the top of a food chain, without natural predators of its own.
Apex predators are usually defined in terms of trophic dynamics, meaning that they occupy the highest trophic lev ...
, being at the top of the avian food chain in its environment.[ In its common, scientific and most regional African names, this species name means “war-like” and indicates the force, brashness and indefatigable nature of their hunting habits. The aggressiveness of the hunting martial eagle, which may rival that of the overall behaviorally bolder ]crowned eagle
The crowned eagle, also known as the African crowned eagle or the crowned hawk-eagle (''Stephanoaetus coronatus''), is a large bird of prey found in sub-Saharan Africa; in Southern Africa it is restricted to eastern areas.Sinclair & Ryan (2003) ...
, can seem incongruous with their other behaviours, as it otherwise is considered a shy, wary and evasive bird.[ Martial eagles have been seen to charge at much larger adult ungulates and rake at their heads and flanks, at times presumably to separate the mammals from their young so they can take the latter with more ease. At other times, these eagles will set down upon a wide range of potentially dangerous prey including other aggressive predators in broad daylight, such as ]monitor lizard
Monitor lizards are lizards in the genus ''Varanus,'' the only extant genus in the family Varanidae. They are native to Africa, Asia, and Oceania, and one species is also found in the Americas as an invasive species. About 80 species are recogn ...
s, venomous snake
Venomous snakes are Species (biology), species of the Suborder (biology), suborder Snake, Serpentes that are capable of producing Snake venom, venom, which they use for killing prey, for defense, and to assist with digestion of their prey. The v ...
s, jackal
Jackals are medium-sized canids native to Africa and Eurasia. While the word "jackal" has historically been used for many canines of the subtribe canina, in modern use it most commonly refers to three species: the closely related black-backed ...
s and medium-sized wild cats.[ Adult eagles tend to hunt larger, potentially dangerous prey more often than immature ones, presumably as they refine their hunting skills with maturity.][ The martial eagle hunts mostly in flight, circling at a great height anywhere in its home range. When prey is perceived with their superb vision, the hunting eagle then stoops sharply to catch its prey by surprise with the prey often being unable to perceive the eagle at nearly as far as the eagle can perceive them despite often being in the open.][ The martial eagle tends to hunt in a long, shallow stoop; however, when the quarry is seen in a more enclosed space, it parachutes down at a steeper angle. The speed of descent is controlled by the angle at which the wings are held above the back. At the point of impact, it shoots its long legs forward, often killing victims on impact, somewhat as large ]falcon
Falcons () are birds of prey in the genus ''Falco'', which includes about 40 species. Falcons are widely distributed on all continents of the world except Antarctica, though closely related raptors did occur there in the Eocene.
Adult falcons ...
s often dispatch their prey.[ Prey may often be spotted from away with a record of about .][ On occasion, they may still-hunt from a high perch or concealed in vegetation near watering holes. If the initial attempt fails, they may swoop around to attempt again, especially if the intended victim is not dangerous. If the quarry is potentially hazardous, such as mammalian carnivores, ]venomous snake
Venomous snakes are Species (biology), species of the Suborder (biology), suborder Snake, Serpentes that are capable of producing Snake venom, venom, which they use for killing prey, for defense, and to assist with digestion of their prey. The v ...
s or large ungulate
Ungulates ( ) are members of the diverse clade Ungulata which primarily consists of large mammals with hooves. These include odd-toed ungulates such as horses, rhinoceroses, and tapirs; and even-toed ungulates such as cattle, pigs, giraffes, cam ...
s, and becomes aware of the eagle too soon, the eagle tends to abandon the hunt.[ Unusually for a bird of its size, it may rarely hover while hunting. This hunting method may be employed particularly if the quarry is any of the aforementioned potentially dangerous prey items such as venomous snakes or carnivores. Other large eagles may similarly (if infrequently) hover over prey such as ]canid
Canidae (; from Latin, '' canis'', " dog") is a biological family of dog-like carnivorans, colloquially referred to as dogs, and constitutes a clade. A member of this family is also called a canid (). There are three subfamilies found withi ...
s and then quickly drop onto if the quarry makes the mistake of pointing its dangerous mouth downwards, then gripping its victim on the back while controlling the neck with the other foot until blood loss is sufficient to kill the prey.[ Prey, including birds, are generally killed on the ground, with infrequent reports of prey taken from trees. Some larger (and presumably slower-flying) avian prey may be taken while in flight; victims of successful hunts have consisted of ]water bird
A water bird, alternatively waterbird or aquatic bird, is a bird that lives on or around water. In some definitions, the term ''water bird'' is especially applied to birds in freshwater ecosystems, although others make no distinction from seabi ...
s such as heron
The herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 72 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genera ''Botaurus'' and ''Ixobrychus ...
s, stork
Storks are large, long-legged, long-necked wading birds with long, stout bills. They belong to the family called Ciconiidae, and make up the order Ciconiiformes . Ciconiiformes previously included a number of other families, such as herons an ...
s and geese
A goose (plural, : geese) is a bird of any of several waterfowl species in the family (biology), family Anatidae. This group comprises the genera ''Anser (bird), Anser'' (the grey geese and white geese) and ''Branta'' (the black geese). Some o ...
.[ If kills are too large and heavy to carry in flight, both members of a pair may return to the kill over several days, probably roosting nearby. If nesting, the pair tends to dismember pieces of large kills such as limbs to bring to the nest. Much of the large prey, perhaps most, that is left on the ground is lost to scavengers.][
The diet of the martial eagle varies greatly with prey availability and can be dictated largely by opportunity. Remarkably, ]mammal
Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur or ...
s, bird
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...
s and reptile
Reptiles, as most commonly defined are the animals in the class Reptilia ( ), a paraphyletic grouping comprising all sauropsids except birds. Living reptiles comprise turtles, crocodilians, squamates (lizards and snakes) and rhynchocephalians ( ...
s can in turn dominate the prey selection of martial eagles in a given area, with no one prey type globally dominating their prey spectrum.[ In some areas, both ]mammal
Mammals () are a group of vertebrate animals constituting the class Mammalia (), characterized by the presence of mammary glands which in females produce milk for feeding (nursing) their young, a neocortex (a region of the brain), fur or ...
s and bird
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the laying of hard-shelled eggs, a high metabolic rate, a four-chambered heart, and a strong yet lightweigh ...
s can each comprise more than 80% of the prey selection.[Boshoff, A.F., & Palmer, N.G. (1980). ''Macro-analysis of prey remains from martial eagle nests in the Cape Province''. Ostrich, 51(1), 7-13.] Over 170 prey species have been reported for the martial eagle which is a much higher number than the full prey spectrum of other larger African booted eagles, and even this may neglect some of the prey they take in the little studied populations from west
West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sunset, Sun sets on the Earth.
Etymology
The word "west" is a Germanic languages, German ...
and central Africa
Central Africa is a subregion of the African continent comprising various countries according to different definitions. Angola, Burundi, the Central African Republic, Chad, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Republic of the Congo, ...
and the northern part of east Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa:
Due to the historical ...
.[Brown, L. (1977). ''Eagles of the World''. Universe Books.] Prey may vary considerably in size but for the most part, prey weighing less than are ignored by hunting martial eagles, with only about 15% of the known prey species averaging less than this. A majority of studies report the average size of prey for martial eagles being between .[Boshoff, A.F., Palmer, N.G., & Avery, G. (1990). ''Regional variation in the diet of martial eagles in the Cape Province, South Africa''. S. Afr. J. Wildl. Res, 20, 57-68.] Average weight of prey taken has been reported at as low as .[Hauser, M.D. (1996). ''The Evolution of Communication''. MIT Press, Cambridge, MA.] A food study largely based in data from the Great Rift Valley, Kenya
The Great Rift Valley is part of an intra-continental ridge system that runs through Kenya from north to south. It is part of the Gregory Rift, the eastern branch of the East African Rift, which starts in Tanzania to the south and continues nor ...
, as well as from Maasai Mara, did reinforce a mean prey mass of just over for the species.[Manuel, H. (2020). ''Nesting martial eagle (Polemaetus bellicocus) diet: Influence of prey delivery and diversity in two Kenyan ecosystems''. Biological baseline study.] However, the mean prey body mass is considerably higher in other known dietary studies. In by far the largest dietary study thus far conducted for the martial eagle species (in the Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope ( af, Provinsie Kaap die Goeie Hoop), commonly referred to as the Cape Province ( af, Kaapprovinsie) and colloquially as The Cape ( af, Die Kaap), was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequen ...
, South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
) the estimated mean prey body mass was approximately .[ In ]Tsavo East National Park
Tsavo East National Park is one of the oldest and largest parks in Kenya at 13,747 square kilometres. Situated in a semi-arid area previously known as the Taru Desert it opened in April 1948, and is located near the town of Voi in the Taita- ...
of Kenya
)
, national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
, ...
, the mean estimated body mass of prey was quite similar at approximately .[ Average prey weights in a study of the Maasai Mara was seemingly even higher, at a median between the average prey sizes for each sex of martial eagle at approximately .][ Despite perhaps a majority of prey for this species weighing less than , martial eagles regular prey size range is claimed at up to .][Mooring, M.S. (1993). ''Predation on a newborn impala by a martial eagle''. Ostrich, 64(4), 185-186.] There is some evidence of prey partitioning (which can be potentially delineated both by prey species and body size of prey items taken) between the sexes. This is typical of raptors with pronounced size sexual dimorphism, as is the case in martial eagles. For instance, in populations where large adult monitor lizard
Monitor lizards are lizards in the genus ''Varanus,'' the only extant genus in the family Varanidae. They are native to Africa, Asia, and Oceania, and one species is also found in the Americas as an invasive species. About 80 species are recogn ...
s are significant as prey, they only start to appear in prey remains at nests only after the female resumes hunting in the latter part of the breeding season.[ The species was the focus for a study using web sourced photography to explore the species' diet across its African range, this study revealed new insight into difference in prey composition between regions, and also revealed differences in prey composition between adult and sub-adult birds, with adults found to prey more frequently on bird prey than sub-adults.] The sexual dimorphism of kills was verified in studies from the Great Rift Valley
The Great Rift Valley is a series of contiguous geographic trenches, approximately in total length, that runs from Lebanon in Asia to Mozambique in Southeast Africa. While the name continues in some usages, it is rarely used in geology as it ...
and Maasai Mara. One study stated that the mean weight of male kills was and that of females was .[ In Maasai Mara, the mean prey was significantly higher for both males, at about , and for females, at about .][
]
Mammals
The most diverse class of prey in the diet as known are mammals, with over 90 mammalian prey species reported.[ In the ]Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope ( af, Provinsie Kaap die Goeie Hoop), commonly referred to as the Cape Province ( af, Kaapprovinsie) and colloquially as The Cape ( af, Die Kaap), was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequen ...
, the cape hare
The Cape hare (''Lepus capensis''), also called the brown hare and the desert hare, is a hare native to Africa and Arabia extending into India.
Taxonomy
The Cape hare was one of the many mammal species originally described by Carl Linnaeus ...
(''Lepus capensis'') reportedly dominates the prey selection, comprising about 53% of the foods selected.[ Other ]lagomorph
The lagomorphs are the members of the taxonomic order Lagomorpha, of which there are two living families: the Leporidae (hares and rabbits) and the Ochotonidae (pikas). The name of the order is derived from the Ancient Greek ''lagos'' (λαγ ...
s, namely the slightly smaller Smith's red rock hare
Smith's red rockhare, Smith's red rock hare or Smith's red rock rabbit (''Pronolagus rupestris'') is a species of mammal in the family Leporidae (rabbits and hares), and is the smallest member of the genus ''Pronolagus''. The upperparts and gular ...
(''Pronolagus rupestris''), mildly larger African savanna hare (''Lepus microtis'') and the much larger scrub hare (''Lepus saxatilis''), are not infrequently taken both in and outside of the Cape area.[ In Maasai Mara, the most regularly identified food, at 17.3% of 191 prey items (and particularly for male martial eagles at 23.9% of their kills), was found to be comprised by a mixture of cape and scrub hares, these in total weighing an estimated mean of .][ For the most part ]rodent
Rodents (from Latin , 'to gnaw') are mammals of the order Rodentia (), which are characterized by a single pair of continuously growing incisors in each of the upper and lower jaws. About 40% of all mammal species are rodents. They are na ...
s are ignored as prey as they are probably too small despite martial eagles taking at times appreciable numbers of Cape
A cape is a clothing accessory or a sleeveless outer garment which drapes the wearer's back, arms, and chest, and connects at the neck.
History
Capes were common in medieval Europe, especially when combined with a hood in the chaperon. Th ...
(''Xerus inauris'') and unstriped ground squirrel
The unstriped ground squirrel (''Xerus rutilus'') is a species of rodent (order Rodentia) in the family Sciuridae. It is the only member of the genus ''Xerus'' . It is found in Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, Sudan, Tanzania, and ...
s (''Xerus rutilus'').[ However, rodents selected as prey have ranged in size from the ]Southern African vlei rat
The Southern African vlei rat (''Otomys irroratus'') is a species of rodent in the vlei rat genus, ''Otomys'', of the family Muridae in the order Rodentia. This is the type species of the genus.South African springhare
The South African springhare (''Pedetes capensis'') ( af, springhaas) is a medium-sized terrestrial and burrowing rodent. Despite the name, it is not a hare. It is one of two extant species in the genus '' Pedetes'', and is native to southern Afr ...
(''Pedetes capensis'') and the greater cane rat
The greater cane rat (''Thryonomys swinderianus''), also known as the grasscutter (in Ghana, Nigeria and other regions of West Africa), is one of two species of cane rats, a small family of African hystricognath rodents. It lives by reed-beds a ...
(''Thryonomys swinderianus'').[ There are records of predation on (the second largest African bat) ]straw-coloured fruit bat
The straw-coloured fruit bat (''Eidolon helvum'') is a large fruit bat that is the most widely distributed of all the African megabats. It is quite common throughout its area ranging from the southwestern Arabian Peninsula, across forest and sava ...
s (''Eidolon helvum'') and galago
Galagos , also known as bush babies, or ''nagapies'' (meaning "night monkeys" in Afrikaans), are small nocturnal primates native to continental, sub-Sahara Africa, and make up the family Galagidae (also sometimes called Galagonidae). They ar ...
s of various sizes (usually weighing a kilo or less) but otherwise mammalian prey they pursue tends to be relatively larger.
Locally, large numbers are taken of any species of hyrax
Hyraxes (), also called dassies, are small, thickset, herbivorous mammals in the order Hyracoidea. Hyraxes are well-furred, rotund animals with short tails. Typically, they measure between long and weigh between . They are superficially simil ...
. The attractiveness of hyraxes as a prey resource may encourage martial eagles to vary their hunting techniques to potentially more time-consuming perch hunting so that they may capture rock hyrax
The rock hyrax (; ''Procavia capensis''), also called dassie, Cape hyrax, rock rabbit, and (in the King James Bible) coney, is a medium-sized terrestrial mammal native to Africa and the Middle East. Commonly referred to in South Africa as the da ...
es from rock formations and tree hyrax
The tree hyrax or tree dassie is a small nocturnal mammal native to Africa. Distantly related to elephants and sea cows, it comprises the four species in the genus ''Dendrohyrax'', one of only three genera in the family Procaviidae, which is t ...
es from trees, contrary to their usual preference for capturing prey on the ground in the open after soaring high. Ranging in average mass from , hyraxes can comprise a healthy meal for a family of martial eagle and are probably among the larger items that male eagles will regularly deliver to nests.[Kingdon, J., Happold, D., Hoffman, M., Butynski, T., Happold, M., & Kalina, J. (2013). ''Mammals of Africa: 6 Vols''. A & C Black.] Another miscellaneous mammal known to fall prey to martial eagles is the ground pangolin
The ground pangolin (''Smutsia temminckii''), also known as Temminck's pangolin, Cape pangolin or steppe pangolin, is one of four species of pangolins which can be found in Africa, and the only one in southern and eastern Africa. The animal was ...
(''Smutsia temminckii''), although it is not clear the age pangolins that are preyed on and how they are dispatched, considering that adults weigh some and have a hard keratin shell that is capable of withstanding lion
The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphi ...
(''Panthera leo'') jaws when in its rolled-up defensive posture.[
Although far less accomplished and prolific as a predator of ]monkeys
Monkey is a common name that may refer to most mammals of the infraorder Simiiformes, also known as the simians. Traditionally, all animals in the group now known as simians are counted as monkeys except the apes, which constitutes an incomple ...
than the crowned eagle
The crowned eagle, also known as the African crowned eagle or the crowned hawk-eagle (''Stephanoaetus coronatus''), is a large bird of prey found in sub-Saharan Africa; in Southern Africa it is restricted to eastern areas.Sinclair & Ryan (2003) ...
, the martial eagle has been known to prey on at least 14 species of monkey. The monkeys to turn up most often as martial eagle prey are grivet
The grivet (''Chlorocebus aethiops'') is an Old World monkey with long white tufts of hair along the sides of its face. Some authorities consider this and all of the members of the genus ''Chlorocebus'' to be a single species, ''Cercopithecus ae ...
s (''Chlorocebus aethiops''), vervet monkey
The vervet monkey (''Chlorocebus pygerythrus''), or simply vervet, is an Old World monkey of the family Cercopithecidae native to Africa. The term "vervet" is also used to refer to all the members of the genus ''Chlorocebus''. The five distinct ...
s (''Chlorocebus pygerythrus'') and malbrouck
The malbrouck (''Chlorocebus cynosuros'') is an Old World primate from Africa that belongs to the genus '' Chlorocebus''. The species is sometimes classified as a subspecies of the vervet monkey (''C. pygerythrus''), or of the widespread grivet ...
s (''Chlorocebus cynosuros''), with mean body masses of , and , respectively, because of their savanna-woods dwelling habits, tendencies to forage on the ground and their primarily diurnal activity.[Kingdon, Jonathan. Mammals of Africa: Volume II: Primates. A&C Black, 2014.] These monkey species have special alarm calls, distinct from those uttered in response to the presence of for example a leopard
The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant species in the genus '' Panthera'', a member of the cat family, Felidae. It occurs in a wide range in sub-Saharan Africa, in some parts of Western and Central Asia, Southern Russia, a ...
(''Panthera pardus''), specifically for martial eagles. Martial eagles are also known to prey on lesser spot-nosed monkey
The lesser spot-nosed monkey (''Cercopithecus petaurista''), also known as the lesser spot-nosed guenon, lesser white-nosed guenon, or lesser white-nosed monkey, is a species of primate in the family Cercopithecidae. It is found in Ivory Coast, G ...
s (''Cercopithecus petaurista''), Lowe's mona monkey
Lowe's mona monkey (''Cercopithecus lowei'') is an Old World monkey in the family Cercopithecidae found from the Ivory Coast to Ghana. It was previously classified as a subspecies of Campbell's mona monkey ''C. campbelli''.
References
Lowe' ...
s (''Cercopithecus lowei''), Tana River mangabey
The Tana River mangabey (''Cercocebus galeritus'') is a highly endangered species of primate in the family Cercopithecidae. Some authorities have included the taxa ''agilis'' and '' sanjei'' as subspecies of this species, while others award the ...
s (''Cercocebus galeritus''), and possibly larger red colobus
Red colobuses are Old World monkeys of the genus ''Piliocolobus''. It was formerly considered a subgenus within the genus ''Procolobus'', which is now restricted to the olive colobus. They are closely related to the black-and-white colobus monke ...
(''colobus badius''). Predatory attacks on juvenile baboon
Baboons are primates comprising the genus ''Papio'', one of the 23 genera of Old World monkeys. There are six species of baboon: the hamadryas baboon, the Guinea baboon, the olive baboon, the yellow baboon, the Kinda baboon and the chacma ba ...
s (''Papio sp.'') by martial eagles have been reported, especially olive baboon
The olive baboon (''Papio anubis''), also called the Anubis baboon, is a member of the family Cercopithecidae Old World monkeys. The species is the most wide-ranging of all baboons, being native to 25 countries throughout Africa, extending fr ...
s (''Papio anubis''). On at least one occasion, this species has attacked humans with apparently predatory intent, making it one of the only birds of prey to do so. In 2019 a young boy was killed and two other children injured by an immature martial eagle in the Ethiopian town of Gaashaamo
Gashamo ( so, Gaashaamo) is a town and the capital of the Misraq Gashamo woreda, in the Somali Region of Ethiopia. It is frequently considered part of the Haud. It is approximately 45km south of the border with Somaliland.
Demographics
Based o ...
.
Carnivores
A carnivore , or meat-eater (Latin, ''caro'', genitive ''carnis'', meaning meat or "flesh" and ''vorare'' meaning "to devour"), is an animal or plant whose food and energy requirements derive from animal tissues (mainly muscle, fat and other sof ...
are important prey for martial eagles. Among these many mongoose
A mongoose is a small terrestrial carnivorous mammal belonging to the family Herpestidae. This family is currently split into two subfamilies, the Herpestinae and the Mungotinae. The Herpestinae comprises 23 living species that are native to so ...
tend to be well represented in their diet. Most mongooses native to the savanna tend to be highly social burrowers. Most of these types of mongoose are also relatively small (probably the second smallest important martial eagle food source after korhaan
Bustards, including floricans and korhaans, are large, terrestrial birds living mainly in dry grassland areas and on the steppes of the Old World. They range in length from . They make up the family Otididae (, formerly known as Otidae). Bustar ...
s) and can effectively escape quickly to the safety of their underground home, so the lighter, more nimble male martial eagle is more likely to habitually pursue them. In southern Africa, the meerkat
MeerKAT, originally the Karoo Array Telescope, is a radio telescope consisting of 64 antennas in the Meerkat National Park, in the Northern Cape of South Africa. In 2003, South Africa submitted an expression of interest to host the Square Kilom ...
(''Suricata suricatta'') comprises up to at least 9.6% of prey remains (as in the Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope ( af, Provinsie Kaap die Goeie Hoop), commonly referred to as the Cape Province ( af, Kaapprovinsie) and colloquially as The Cape ( af, Die Kaap), was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequen ...
) and the Cape grey mongoose
The Cape grey mongoose (''Herpestes pulverulentus''), also called the small grey mongoose, is a small mammal native to South Africa, Lesotho and southern Namibia.
Appearance
It is a small species (55–69 cm long, weight range 0.5 – 1 ...
(''Galerella pulverulenta'') comprising an average of 7.2% of prey remains in the Cape area. The largest of the social savanna-dwelling mongoose is the banded mongoose
The banded mongoose (''Mungos mungo'') is a mongoose species native from the Sahel to Southern Africa. It lives in savannas, open forests and grasslands and feeds primarily on beetles and millipedes. Mongooses use various types of dens for shel ...
at . In pooled data from the Great Rift Valley and Maasai Mara, the banded mongoose fell third behind only francolins and hares as the most regularly selected prey for martial eagles. Despite often being successful in capturing banded mongoose, in one case when a (presumably inexperienced) immature martial eagle took one to a tree, the dominant male banded mongoose of the group scaled the tree and pulled the still-living mongoose prey to safety. The martial eagle is a known predator of the full size range of mongoose species, from the smallest species, the common dwarf mongoose
The common dwarf mongoose (''Helogale parvula'') is a mongoose species native to Angola, northern Namibia, KwaZulu-Natal in South Africa, Zambia and East Africa. It is part of the genus ''Helogale'', along with the Ethiopian dwarf mongoose.
Ch ...
(''Helogale parvula''), to the largest, the white-tailed mongoose
The white-tailed mongoose (''Ichneumia albicauda'') is a species in the mongoose family Herpestidae. It is the only member of the genus ''Ichneumia''.
Taxonomy
''Herpestes albicaudus'' was the scientific name proposed by Georges Cuvier in 1829 ...
(''Ichneumia albicauda''). Other moderate-sized carnivores known to fall prey to martial eagles include striped polecat
The striped polecat (''Ictonyx striatus''), also called the African polecat, zoril, zorille, zorilla, Cape polecat, and African skunk, is a member of the family Mustelidae that resembles a skunk (of the family Mephitidae). The name "zorilla" co ...
(''Ictonyx striatus'') and a few species of genet, which are about twice as heavy on average as the polecat. The martial eagle, however, can be a surprisingly effective predator of carnivorans close to their own size or larger. In the Cape Province
The Province of the Cape of Good Hope ( af, Provinsie Kaap die Goeie Hoop), commonly referred to as the Cape Province ( af, Kaapprovinsie) and colloquially as The Cape ( af, Die Kaap), was a province in the Union of South Africa and subsequen ...
, 72 bat-eared foxes (''Otocyon megalotis''), which average about , were found in the prey remains, 85% of which were adults. Jackal
Jackals are medium-sized canids native to Africa and Eurasia. While the word "jackal" has historically been used for many canines of the subtribe canina, in modern use it most commonly refers to three species: the closely related black-backed ...
s are occasionally targeted as prey, especially black-backed jackal
The black-backed jackal (''Lupulella mesomelas),'' also called the silver-backed jackal, is a medium-sized canine native to eastern and southern Africa. These regions are separated by roughly 900 kilometers.
One region includes the southe ...
s (''Canis mesomelas'').[ Adult ]domestic dog
The dog (''Canis familiaris'' or ''Canis lupus familiaris'') is a domesticated descendant of the wolf. Also called the domestic dog, it is Domestication of the dog, derived from the extinct Pleistocene wolf, and the modern wolf is the dog's n ...
s (''Canis familiaris'') of up to a modest size may occasionally be killed by martial eagles.[Govender, B. (2015). ''Waterfall pets fall prey to eagles''. Highway Mail, Zimbabwe.] Martial eagles are also known to opportunistically grab pups of African wild dog
The African wild dog (''Lycaon pictus''), also called the painted dog or Cape hunting dog, is a wild canine which is a native species to sub-Saharan Africa. It is the largest wild canine in Africa, and the only extant member of the genus '' Ly ...
s (''Lycaon pictus'') as they emerge from their dens. A similarly impressive range of felid
Felidae () is the family of mammals in the order Carnivora colloquially referred to as cats, and constitutes a clade. A member of this family is also called a felid (). The term "cat" refers both to felids in general and specifically to the dom ...
s have been included in their prey spectrum. Adults of both domestic cat
The cat (''Felis catus'') is a domestic species of small carnivorous mammal. It is the only domesticated species in the family Felidae and is commonly referred to as the domestic cat or house cat to distinguish it from the wild members o ...
s and their ancestors, the African wildcat
The African wildcat (''Felis lybica'') is a small wildcat species native to Africa, West and Central Asia up to Rajasthan in India and Xinjiang in China. It has been listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List in 2022.
In Cyprus, an African wil ...
(''Felis lybica''), are known to fall prey to this species. Much larger cat species such as the serval
The serval (''Leptailurus serval'') is a wild cat native to Africa. It is widespread in sub-Saharan countries, except rainforest regions. Across its range, it occurs in protected areas, and hunting it is either prohibited or regulated in ran ...
s (''Leptailurus serval'') and even the caracal
The caracal (''Caracal caracal'') () is a medium-sized wild cat native to Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, and arid areas of Pakistan and northwestern India. It is characterised by a robust build, long legs, a short face, long tufted e ...
s (''Caracal caracal'') are taken, mainly kittens and even adults.[ Apparent predatory attacks are even attempted on ]big cat
The term "big cat" is typically used to refer to any of the five living members of the genus '' Panthera'', namely the tiger, lion, jaguar, leopard, and snow leopard.
Despite enormous differences in size, various cat species are quite similar ...
cubs as they are considered potential predators of lion
The lion (''Panthera leo'') is a large Felidae, cat of the genus ''Panthera'' native to Africa and India. It has a muscular, broad-chested body; short, rounded head; round ears; and a hairy tuft at the end of its tail. It is sexually dimorphi ...
and leopard
The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant species in the genus '' Panthera'', a member of the cat family, Felidae. It occurs in a wide range in sub-Saharan Africa, in some parts of Western and Central Asia, Southern Russia, a ...
(''Panthera pardus'') cubs and confirmed predators of cheetah
The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large cat native to Africa and central Iran. It is the fastest land animal, estimated to be capable of running at with the fastest reliably recorded speeds being , and as such has evolved specialized ...
(''Acinonyx jubatus'') cubs. However, they rapidly abandon hunting attempts if the formidable mother lion or leopard is present. Successful predatory attacks on other large carnivores have included adults of the African civet
The African civet (''Civettictis civetta'') is a large viverrid native to sub-Saharan Africa, where it is considered common and widely distributed in woodlands and secondary forests. It is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List since 200 ...
(''Civettictis civetta'') and the aardwolf
The aardwolf (''Proteles cristata'') is an insectivorous species of hyena, native to East and Southern Africa. Its name means "earth-wolf" in Afrikaans and Dutch. It is also called maanhaar-jackal (Afrikaans for " mane-jackal"), termite-eat ...
(''Proteles cristata'').
While large accipitrids from around the world are credited with attacks on (almost always young) ungulate
Ungulates ( ) are members of the diverse clade Ungulata which primarily consists of large mammals with hooves. These include odd-toed ungulates such as horses, rhinoceroses, and tapirs; and even-toed ungulates such as cattle, pigs, giraffes, cam ...
s, perhaps no other species is as accomplished in this regard as this martial eagle. Over 30 species of ungulate have been identified as prey for this species, more species than are attributed to the perhaps more powerful crowned eagle
The crowned eagle, also known as the African crowned eagle or the crowned hawk-eagle (''Stephanoaetus coronatus''), is a large bird of prey found in sub-Saharan Africa; in Southern Africa it is restricted to eastern areas.Sinclair & Ryan (2003) ...
s and all the world's golden eagle
The golden eagle (''Aquila chrysaetos'') is a bird of prey living in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the most widely distributed species of eagle. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. They are one of the best-known bird of p ...
s, although in all three seldom ungulates in a given region comprise more than 30% of the diet.[ In ]Kruger National Park
Kruger National Park is a South African National Park and one of the largest game reserves in Africa. It covers an area of in the provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga in northeastern South Africa, and extends from north to south and from ea ...
, the martial eagle is mentioned as the only bird considered as a major predator of ungulate species. A majority of the ungulate diet of martial eagles are comprised by small antelope
The term antelope is used to refer to many species of even-toed ruminant that are indigenous to various regions in Africa and Eurasia.
Antelope comprise a wastebasket taxon defined as any of numerous Old World grazing and browsing hoofed mammals ...
species or the young of larger antelopes. Locally favored prey are the dik-dik
A dik-dik is the name for any of four species of small antelope in the genus ''Madoqua'' that live in the bushlands of eastern and southern Africa.
Dik-diks stand about at the shoulder, are long, weigh and can live for up to 10 years. Dik- ...
s, one of the smallest kinds of antelope, and every known species may be vulnerable to this eagle.[Castelló, J.R. (2016). ''Bovids of the World: Antelopes, Gazelles, Cattle, Goats, Sheep, and Relatives''. Princeton University Press.] In Tsavo East National Park
Tsavo East National Park is one of the oldest and largest parks in Kenya at 13,747 square kilometres. Situated in a semi-arid area previously known as the Taru Desert it opened in April 1948, and is located near the town of Voi in the Taita- ...
, Kirk's dik-dik
Kirk's dik-dik (''Madoqua kirkii'') is a small antelope native to Eastern Africa and one of four species of dik-dik antelope. It is believed to have six subspecies and possibly a seventh existing in southwest Africa. Dik-diks are herbivores, typi ...
(''Madoqua kirkii'') were the second most numerous prey species and it was estimated that at least 86 dik-diks are taken in the park over the course of the year by two pairs of martial eagles. At an average of , these can provide a very fulfilling meal for an eagle family.[ In Maasai Mara, young ungulates appeared particularly significant in the diet of adult female martial eagles, with impala fawns averaging an estimated comprising 34.2% of female kills (and 13.6% of the species' overall foods) and ]Thomson's gazelle
Thomson's gazelle (''Eudorcas thomsonii'') is one of the best known species of gazelles. It is named after explorer Joseph Thomson and is sometimes referred to as a "tommie". It is considered by some to be a subspecies of the red-fronted gazelle a ...
fawns at about comprising a further 15.1% of female kills (and 10.5% of the overall diet here). Furthermore, young Grant's gazelle
Grant's gazelle (''Nanger granti'') is a species of gazelle distributed from northern Tanzania to South Sudan and Ethiopia, and from the Kenyan coast to Lake Victoria. Its Swahili name is ''swala granti''.[impala (''Aepyceros melampus''), ]hartebeest
The hartebeest (; ''Alcelaphus buselaphus''), also known as kongoni or kaama, is an African antelope. It is the only member of the genus ''Alcelaphus''. Eight subspecies have been described, including two sometimes considered to be indepen ...
(''Alcelaphus buselaphus''), bontebok
The bontebok (''Damaliscus pygargus'') is an antelope found in South Africa, Lesotho and Namibia. ''D. pygargus'' has two subspecies; the nominate subspecies (''D. p. pygargus''), occurring naturally in the Fynbos and Renosterveld areas of ...
(''Damaliscus pygargus''), common tsessebe
The common tsessebe or sassaby (''Damaliscus lunatus lunatus'') is the southern, nominate subspecies of ''Damaliscus lunatus'', although some authorities have recognised it as an independent species. It is most closely related to the Bangweulu ts ...
(''Damaliscus lunatus''), springbok
The springbok (''Antidorcas marsupialis'') is a medium-sized antelope found mainly in south and southwest Africa. The sole member of the genus ''Antidorcas'', this bovid was first described by the German zoologist Eberhard August Wilhelm v ...
(''Antidorcas marsupialis''), ''Eudorcas
''Eudorcas'' is a genus of antelope; the species are commonly called gazelles. ''Eudorcas'' was originally considered a subgenus of the genus ''Gazella
A gazelle is one of many antelope species in the genus ''Gazella'' . This article also ...
'' gazelle
A gazelle is one of many antelope species in the genus ''Gazella'' . This article also deals with the seven species included in two further genera, '' Eudorcas'' and '' Nanger'', which were formerly considered subgenera of ''Gazella''. A third ...
s, gerenuk
The gerenuk (; so, garanuug; ''Litocranius walleri''), also known as the giraffe gazelle, is a long-necked antelope found in parts of East Africa. The sole member of the genus ''Litocranius'', the gerenuk was first described by the naturalist ...
(''Litocranius walleri''), bushbuck
The Cape bushbuck (''Tragelaphus sylvaticus'') is a common and a widespread species of antelope in sub-Saharan Africa.Wronski T, Moodley Y. (2009)Bushbuck, harnessed antelope or both? ''Gnusletter'', 28(1):18-19. Bushbuck are found in a wide ra ...
(''Tragelaphus sylvaticus''), grey rhebok
The grey rhebok or gray rhebuck (''Pelea capreolus''), locally known as the ''reebok'' in Afrikaans, is a species of antelope native to South Africa, Lesotho, and Eswatini (Swaziland). The specific name ''capreolus'' is Latin for 'little goat' ...
(''Pelea capreolus''), kob
The kob (''Kobus kob'') is an antelope found across Central Africa and parts of West Africa and East Africa. Together with the closely related reedbucks, waterbucks, lechwe, Nile lechwe, and puku, it forms the Reduncinae tribe. Found along ...
(''Kobus kob'') and mountain reedbuck
The mountain reedbuck (''Redunca fulvorufula'') is an antelope found in mountainous areas of much of sub-Saharan Africa.
Subspecies
There are three recognized subspecies.
* ''Redunca fulvorufula adamauae'' - Adamawa mountain reedbuck
* ''Redu ...
(''Redunca arundinum''). These species can vary in weight from (i.e. gazelles) to (i.e. tsessebe) in newborns.[ For the newborn impala, weighing already , the martial eagle is the only bird considered to be a significant predator.][ Additionally, piglets of ]warthog
''Phacochoerus'' is a genus in the family Suidae, commonly known as warthogs (pronounced ''wart-hog''). They are pigs who live in open and semi-open habitats, even in quite arid regions, in sub-Saharan Africa. The two species were formerly cons ...
s (''Phacochoerus africanus'') (of which only the martial eagle among accipitrids is similarly mentioned as a significant predator) and bushpig
:''"Bush pig" may also refer to the red river hog.
The bushpig (''Potamochoerus larvatus'') is a member of the pig family that inhabits forests, woodland, riverine vegetation and cultivated areas in East and Southern Africa. Probably introduce ...
s (''Potamochoerus larvatus'') are taken.[ Adults of other small antelope such as suni (''Neotragus moschatus'') and ]blue duiker
The blue duiker (''Philantomba monticola'') is a small antelope found in central, southern and eastern Africa. It is the smallest duiker. The species was first described by Swedish naturalist Carl Peter Thunberg in 1789. 12 subspecies are i ...
s (''Philantomba monticola'') are probably also taken with relative ease.[ In general, the young of other antelope are usually attacked, including newborns. Occasional ambush attacks or successful predations are reported on adults of much larger species despite young ones being rather more vulnerable, including ]klipspringer
The klipspringer (; ''Oreotragus oreotragus'') is a small antelope found in eastern and southern Africa. The sole member of its genus and subfamily/tribe, the klipspringer was first described by German zoologist Eberhard August Wilhelm von Zim ...
s (''Oreotragus oreotragus''), steenboks (''Raphicerus campestris''), both species of grysbok ( on average), oribi
The oribi (; ''Ourebia ourebi'') is a small antelope found in eastern, southern and western Africa. The sole member of its genus, it was described by the German zoologist Eberhard August Wilhelm von Zimmermann in 1783. While this is the only ...
s (''Ourebia ourebi'') and perhaps up to half a dozen larger duiker
A duiker is a small to medium-sized brown antelope native to sub-Saharan Africa, found in heavily wooded areas. The 22 extant species, including three sometimes considered to be subspecies of the other species, form the subfamily Cephalophina ...
s, potentially weighing from .[Irwin, M.P.S. (1981). ''The birds of Zimbabwe''. Quest Publishing, Salisbury, Zimbabwe.] One duiker dispatched via strangulation weighed an estimated , one of the largest known raptorial kill for any species on the Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
n continent.[
Among extant birds of prey, only ]wedge-tailed eagle
The wedge-tailed eagle (''Aquila audax'') is the largest bird of prey in the continent of Australia. It is also found in southern New Guinea to the north and is distributed as far south as the state of Tasmania. Adults of this species have lon ...
s, reportedly capable of killing sheep
Sheep or domestic sheep (''Ovis aries'') are domesticated, ruminant mammals typically kept as livestock. Although the term ''sheep'' can apply to other species in the genus ''Ovis'', in everyday usage it almost always refers to domesticated s ...
and female red kangaroo
The red kangaroo (''Osphranter rufus'') is the largest of all kangaroos, the largest terrestrial mammal native to Australia, and the largest extant marsupial. It is found across mainland Australia, except for the more fertile areas, such as sou ...
s (''Macropus rufus'') weighing up to , crowned eagle
The crowned eagle, also known as the African crowned eagle or the crowned hawk-eagle (''Stephanoaetus coronatus''), is a large bird of prey found in sub-Saharan Africa; in Southern Africa it is restricted to eastern areas.Sinclair & Ryan (2003) ...
s taking antelope
The term antelope is used to refer to many species of even-toed ruminant that are indigenous to various regions in Africa and Eurasia.
Antelope comprise a wastebasket taxon defined as any of numerous Old World grazing and browsing hoofed mammals ...
of the same estimated weight and golden eagle
The golden eagle (''Aquila chrysaetos'') is a bird of prey living in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the most widely distributed species of eagle. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. They are one of the best-known bird of p ...
s, credited with taking adult female deer
Deer or true deer are hoofed ruminant mammals forming the family Cervidae. The two main groups of deer are the Cervinae, including the muntjac, the elk (wapiti), the red deer, and the fallow deer; and the Capreolinae, including the reindeer ...
of several species with weights estimated at , and capable of apparently dispatching domestic calves weighing up to , have larger kills attributed to them.[Phillips, R.L., Cummings, J.L., Notah, G. & Mullis, C. 1996. ''Golden eagle predation on domestic calves''. Wildlife Society Bulletin, 24: 468-470.]
Birds
Compared to the range and sizes of mammals included in their prey spectrum, birds taken by martial eagles may seem less impressive as a whole, but the morphology of the martial eagle, including large wing surface areas, pronounced sexual dimorphism and relatively long toes, shows that the species is at least partially specialized to hunt avian prey. Birds are universally considered by biologists more difficult to capture than mammals of the same size. In all, more than 50 bird species have been identified as the prey of martial eagles.[ The most significant portion of the avian diet is comprised by medium-sized terrestrial upland birds such as ]guineafowl
Guineafowl (; sometimes called "pet speckled hens" or "original fowl") are birds of the family Numididae in the order Galliformes. They are endemic to Africa and rank among the oldest of the gallinaceous birds. Phylogenetically, they branched o ...
, spurfowl Spurfowl are two genera of birds:
* ''Galloperdix'', from India and Sri Lanka
* ''Pternistis
''Pternistis'' is a genus of galliform birds formerly classified in the spurfowl group of the Perdicinae, partridge subfamily of the Phasianidae, phea ...
, francolin
Francolins are birds in the tribe Gallini that traditionally have been placed in the genus ''Francolinus'', but now commonly are divided into multiple genera.
As previously defined, they were paraphyletic as the genus '' Pternistis'', which wa ...
s and bustard
Bustards, including floricans and korhaans, are large, terrestrial birds living mainly in dry grassland areas and on the steppes of the Old World. They range in length from . They make up the family Otididae (, formerly known as Otidae). Bustards ...
s. In total more than a dozen species of the galliform
Galliformes is an order of heavy-bodied ground-feeding birds that includes turkeys, chickens, quail, and other landfowl. Gallinaceous birds, as they are called, are important in their ecosystems as seed dispersers and predators, and are often ...
order and the bustard family each have been identified as their prey.[ When attacking these ground-loving birds, which are understandably quite easily spooked and usually react to potential danger by flying off, martial eagles almost always try to take them on the ground much like they do mammalian prey. If the birds take flight, the hunting attempt will fail, although a hunting eagle may try to surprise the same birds again.][ In ]Niger
)
, official_languages =
, languages_type = National languages[helmeted guineafowl (''Numida meleagris''). Other guineafowl such as the vulturine (''Acryllium vulturinum'') and ](_blank)crested guineafowl
The crested guineafowl (''Guttera pucherani'') is a member of the Numididae, the guineafowl bird family. It is found in open forest, woodland and forest-savanna mosaics in sub-Saharan Africa.
Description
It has a total length around 50 cm (2 ...
(''Guttera edouardi'') are also readily taken elsewhere. Guineafowl and spurfowl were stated as the most numerous prey for martial eagles in Kruger National Park
Kruger National Park is a South African National Park and one of the largest game reserves in Africa. It covers an area of in the provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga in northeastern South Africa, and extends from north to south and from ea ...
. In Tsavo East National Park
Tsavo East National Park is one of the oldest and largest parks in Kenya at 13,747 square kilometres. Situated in a semi-arid area previously known as the Taru Desert it opened in April 1948, and is located near the town of Voi in the Taita- ...
, the red-crested korhaan
The red-crested korhaan or red-crested bustard (''Lophotis ruficrista'') is a species of bird in the family Otididae. It is found in Angola, Botswana, Eswatini, Mozambique, Namibia, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
Description
The red-creste ...
(''Lophotis ruficrista''), perhaps the smallest bustard the eagle hunts, is the most numerous prey taken, comprising about 39% of the prey remains.[ In the Great Rift Valley and Maasai Mara data, the ]Coqui francolin
The Coqui francolin (''Campocolinus coqui'') is a species of bird in the family Phasianidae.
Taxonomy
Formerly classified in the genus ''Peliperdix'', a 2020 study found it, the white-throated francolin (''C. albogularis''), and Schlegel's fr ...
(''Peliperdix coqui'') was reportedly the most regularly identified prey and, in separate studies, helmeted guineafowl averaging made up 12% of the foods in Maasai Mara.[ Medium-sized bustards such as the Hartlaub's bustard (''Lissotis hartlaubii'') and the ]karoo korhaan
The karoo korhaan (''Eupodotis vigorsii''), also known as karoo bustard, is a species of bird in the bustard family, Otididae, from Southern Africa. The species is sometimes placed in the genus '' Heterotetrax''. It is the sister-species to Rüppe ...
(''Eupodotis vigorsii'') were oft-taken supplemental prey in Tsavo East and the Cape Province, respectively.[ Although these are not usually taken in large numbers, martial eagles are one of the main predators of larger bustards. These may include (averaged between the extremely size dimorphic sexes) the ]Ludwig's bustard
Ludwig's bustard (''Neotis ludwigii'') is a species of bird in the bustard family, and named after Baron von Ludwig. It is a medium-to-large sized species.
Description
The Ludwig's bustard can weigh from , with a mean of for the much larger ma ...
(''Neotis ludwigii''), the Denham's bustard
Denham's bustard, Stanley bustard or Stanley's bustard (''Neotis denhami'') is a large bird in the bustard family. It breeds in much of Sub-Saharan Africa. It is a species of open ground, including agricultural land, grassland, flood-plains and ...
(''Neotis denhami'') and even the kori bustard
The kori bustard (''Ardeotis kori'') is the largest flying bird native to Africa. It is a member of the bustard family, which all belong to the order Otidiformes and are restricted in distribution to the Old World. It is one of the four species ( ...
(''Ardeotis kori''), seemingly the heaviest bustard in the world on average at , the average estimated weight of 13 kori bustard kills being .[ Attacks on adult male kori bustards, which are certain to be the largest avian prey attacked by martial eagles and are twice as heavy as females, averaging some , can be extremely prolonged. One protracted battle resulted in an injured leg for the eagle and massive, fatal blood loss for the male bustard, which was ultimately scavenged by a jackal by the following morning.][
Despite its preference for ground-dwelling avian prey, a surprisingly considerable number of water birds may also be attacked. ]Waterfowl
Anseriformes is an order of birds also known as waterfowl that comprises about 180 living species of birds in three families: Anhimidae (three species of screamers), Anseranatidae (the magpie goose), and Anatidae, the largest family, which in ...
known to be attacked include the South African shelduck
The South African shelduck or Cape shelduck (''Tadorna cana'') is a species of shelduck, a group of large goose-like birds which are part of the bird family Anatidae, which also includes the swans, geese and ducks. This is a common species nativ ...
(''Tadorna cana''), yellow-billed duck
The yellow-billed duck (''Anas undulata'') is a 51–58 cm long dabbling duck which is an abundant resident breeder in southern and eastern Africa. This duck is not migratory, but wanders in the dry season to find suitable waters. It is h ...
(''Anas undulata''), the spur-winged goose
The spur-winged goose (''Plectropterus gambensis'') is a large bird in the family Anatidae, related to the geese and the shelducks, but distinct from both of these in a number of anatomical features, and therefore treated in its own subfamily, th ...
(''Plectropterus gambensis'') (Africa's largest waterfowl species) and especially the peculiar, overly bold and aggressive Egyptian goose
The Egyptian goose (''Alopochen aegyptiaca'') is a member of the duck, goose, and swan family Anatidae. It is native to Africa south of the Sahara and the Nile Valley.
Egyptian geese were considered sacred by the Ancient Egyptians, and appear ...
(''Alopochen aegyptiaca''), which is one of the main prey species for martial eagles in Kruger National Park
Kruger National Park is a South African National Park and one of the largest game reserves in Africa. It covers an area of in the provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga in northeastern South Africa, and extends from north to south and from ea ...
.[ Based on the high estimated weight when taken of Egyptian goose of , male geese may be targeted over females.][ Larger wading birds are also fairly frequently attacked including ]heron
The herons are long-legged, long-necked, freshwater and coastal birds in the family Ardeidae, with 72 recognised species, some of which are referred to as egrets or bitterns rather than herons. Members of the genera ''Botaurus'' and ''Ixobrychus ...
s and egret
Egrets ( ) are herons, generally long-legged wading birds, that have white or buff plumage, developing fine plumes (usually milky white) during the breeding season. Egrets are not a biologically distinct group from herons and have the same build ...
s, flamingo
Flamingos or flamingoes are a type of Wader, wading bird in the Family (biology), family Phoenicopteridae, which is the only extant family in the order Phoenicopteriformes. There are four flamingo species distributed throughout the Americas ...
es stork
Storks are large, long-legged, long-necked wading birds with long, stout bills. They belong to the family called Ciconiidae, and make up the order Ciconiiformes . Ciconiiformes previously included a number of other families, such as herons an ...
s, ibis
The ibises () (collective plural ibis; classical plurals ibides and ibes) are a group of long-legged wading birds in the family Threskiornithidae, that inhabit wetlands, forests and plains. "Ibis" derives from the Latin and Ancient Greek word f ...
es, spoonbill
Spoonbills are a genus, ''Platalea'', of large, long-legged wading birds. The spoonbills have a global distribution, being found on every continent except Antarctica. The genus name ''Platalea'' derives from Ancient Greek and means "broad", refe ...
s and cranes.[ The diversity and number of storks taken is particularly impressive. They are known to take 8 species of stork, ranging from the smallest known species, the African openbill (''Anastomus lamelligerus''), to the tallest species in the world, the , -tall ]saddle-billed stork
The saddle-billed stork or saddlebill (''Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis'') is a large wading bird in the stork family, Ciconiidae. It is a widespread species which is a resident breeder in sub-Saharan Africa from Sudan, Ethiopia and Kenya south to ...
(''Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis''). One naturalists observed up to a half dozen attacks in different parts of Africa on white stork
The white stork (''Ciconia ciconia'') is a large bird in the stork family, Ciconiidae. Its plumage is mainly white, with black on the bird's wings. Adults have long red legs and long pointed red beaks, and measure on average from beak tip to en ...
s (''Ciconia ciconia'').[Curry-Lindahl, K. (1971). ''Prey of the Martial Eagle''. Africana, 4 (5): 8.] Short of three attacks on spotted thick-knee
The spotted thick-knee (''Burhinus capensis''), also known as the spotted dikkop or Cape thick-knee, is a wader in the family Stone-curlew, Burhinidae. It is native to tropical regions of central and southern Africa.
Description
The spotted thic ...
s (''Burhinus capensis''), which weigh about , and smaller still crowned lapwings (''Vanellus coronatus'') so far as is known small waders or shorebirds are ignored as prey.[ Other assorted avian prey may consists of ]ostrich
Ostriches are large flightless birds of the genus ''Struthio'' in the order Struthioniformes, part of the infra-class Palaeognathae, a diverse group of flightless birds also known as ratites that includes the emus, rheas, and kiwis. There are ...
(''Struthio camelus'') chicks weighing an estimated mean of , frequently resulting in the immediate ire of protective ostrich parents. Further avian prey may extent to sandgrouse
Sandgrouse is the common name for Pteroclidae , a family (biology), family of sixteen species of bird, members of the order Pterocliformes . They are traditionally placed in two Genus, genera. The two central Asian species are classified as ''Sy ...
, pigeon
Columbidae () is a bird family consisting of doves and pigeons. It is the only family in the order Columbiformes. These are stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills that in some species feature fleshy ceres. They primarily ...
s and dove
Columbidae () is a bird family consisting of doves and pigeons. It is the only family in the order Columbiformes. These are stout-bodied birds with short necks and short slender bills that in some species feature fleshy ceres. They primarily ...
s, hornbill
Hornbills (Bucerotidae) are a family (biology), family of bird found in tropical and subtropical Africa, Asia and Melanesia. They are characterized by a long, down-curved bill which is frequently brightly coloured and sometimes has a Casque (an ...
s and crow
A crow is a bird of the genus '' Corvus'', or more broadly a synonym for all of ''Corvus''. Crows are generally black in colour. The word "crow" is used as part of the common name of many species. The related term "raven" is not pinned scientifica ...
s.[ Beyond occasional captures of other ]birds of prey
Birds of prey or predatory birds, also known as raptors, are hypercarnivorous bird species that actively hunt and feed on other vertebrates (mainly mammals, reptiles and other smaller birds). In addition to speed and strength, these predators ...
(covered later), one other impressive avian prey species is the southern ground hornbill
The southern ground hornbill (''Bucorvus leadbeateri''; formerly known as ''Bucorvus cafer'') is one of two species of ground hornbill, both of which are found solely within Africa, and is the largest species in the hornbill order worldwide. It ...
(''Bucorvus leadbeateri''), which at is probably the world's largest hornbill.[ At the other end of the scale, some martial eagles may capture a few small social species of passerine, which are exceptionally small prey (the smallest recorded prey species for the eagle overall), potentially consisting of the ]red-billed quelea
The red-billed quelea (; ''Quelea quelea''), also known as the red-billed weaver or red-billed dioch, is a small—approximately long and weighing —migratory, sparrow-like bird of the weaver family, Ploceidae, native to Sub-Saharan Africa.
...
s (''Quelea quelea'') and the sociable weaver
The sociable weaver (''Philetairus socius'') is a species of bird in the weaver family that is endemic to southern Africa. It is the only species in the monotypic genus ''Philetairus''. It is found in South Africa, Namibia, and Botswana. but th ...
s (''Philetairus socius''), as practically every meat-eating bird in Africa may be attracted to these species’ colonial abundance.[
]
Reptiles
Reptiles can be locally important in the diet, and they are known to take larger numbers of reptiles than other large African booted eagles. Only relatively large reptiles, it seems, are attacked and many of this prey is also potentially dangerous, so martial eagles have unusually long, gracile tarsi, perhaps an adaptation to dangerous large reptilian prey.[ Based on the photographic analysis, reptilian prey, predominately adult monitors comprise 21% of the total 239 prey items.][ In particular, in the former ]Transvaal province
The Province of the Transvaal ( af, Provinsie van Transvaal), commonly referred to as the Transvaal (; ), was a province of South Africa from 1910 until 1994, when a new constitution subdivided it following the end of apartheid. The name "Trans ...
of northeastern South Africa, reptiles were the main prey, with monitor lizard
Monitor lizards are lizards in the genus ''Varanus,'' the only extant genus in the family Varanidae. They are native to Africa, Asia, and Oceania, and one species is also found in the Americas as an invasive species. About 80 species are recogn ...
s alone comprising just under half of the prey remains.[Tarboton, W.R. & Allan, D.G. (1984). ''The status and conservation of birds of prey in the Transvaal''. Transvaal Museum Monograph No. 3. Pretoria.] A small food study in Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...
found that 69% of 39 prey items were made up of monitor lizards. Large monitors such as rock monitor
The rock monitor (''Varanus albigularis'') is a species of monitor lizard in the family Varanidae. The species is endemic to Central, East, and southern Africa. It is the second-longest lizard found on the continent, and the heaviest-bodied; lo ...
s (''Varanus albigularis''), the nile monitor
The Nile monitor (''Varanus niloticus'') is a large member of the monitor family (Varanidae) found throughout most of Sub-Saharan Africa and along the Nile, with invasive populations in North America. The population in West African forests and sa ...
s (''Varanus niloticus'') and the savannah monitor
The savannah monitor (''Varanus exanthematicus'') is a medium-sized species of monitor lizard native to Africa. The species is known as Bosc's monitor in Europe, since French scientist Louis Bosc first described the species. It belongs to the su ...
s (''Varanus exanthematicus'') are mainly taken.[Campbell, Michael O'Neal. The Great Eagles: Their Evolution, Ecology and Conservation. CRC Press, 2022.] These monitors, the largest lizards in Africa, are formidable prey, so most of the hunts are ambushes on adult monitors by mature female eagles.[ Sometimes a lengthy struggle will ensue as the eagles try to get a good grip on the tough back skin of the monitors while simultaneously trying to control their necks to avoid the prey's powerful jaws, however, the eagles are usually successful in dispatching the large lizards.][Middleton, A.G. (2002). ''Feeding ecology of some eagles on Triangle Estate''. Honeyguide. 48(2): 181-189.]
Other reptiles are also occasionally taken. In Kruger National Park
Kruger National Park is a South African National Park and one of the largest game reserves in Africa. It covers an area of in the provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga in northeastern South Africa, and extends from north to south and from ea ...
, reptiles as a whole made up 38% of the prey remains. These consisted of monitor lizards as well as a wide range of snake
Snakes are elongated, Limbless vertebrate, limbless, carnivore, carnivorous reptiles of the suborder Serpentes . Like all other Squamata, squamates, snakes are ectothermic, amniote vertebrates covered in overlapping Scale (zoology), scales. Ma ...
s.[ Elsewhere, ]snouted cobra
The snouted cobra (''Naja annulifera''), also called the banded Egyptian cobra, is a highly venomous species of cobra found in Southern Africa.
Description
The snouted cobra is a relatively large species. Adult specimens average between in len ...
s (''Naja annulifera'') may added to the list of their prey spectrum.[ Even youngsters of the ]African rock python
The Central African rock python (''Python sebae'') is a species of large constrictor snake in the family Pythonidae. The species is native to sub-Saharan Africa. It is one of 11 living species in the genus ''Python''.
Africa's largest snake and ...
(''Python sebae''), the largest African snake was taken. The weight estimated for a rock python kill was .[ Tent tortoises (''Psammobates tentorius'') and possibly ]Bell's hinge-back tortoise
Bell's hinge-back tortoise (''Kinixys belliana''), also known commonly as Bell's eastern hinged tortoise, is a species of tortoise in the family Testudinidae. The species is native to central Africa. It has the hinge that characterizes all tort ...
s (''Kinixys spekii'') are also taken by martial eagles, [ In one case, an estimated ]nile crocodile
The Nile crocodile (''Crocodylus niloticus'') is a large crocodilian native to freshwater habitats in Africa, where it is present in 26 countries. It is widely distributed throughout sub-Saharan Africa, occurring mostly in the central, eastern ...
(''Crocodylus niloticus'') was captured and flown with by a martial eagle.
Interspecies predatory relationships
For terrestrial predators, including birds of prey, sub-Saharan Africa may be the most competitive environment in the modern world. Due to great diversity of raptors present, each species have shown adaptive specializations, which may consist of various morphological differences that allow them to capitalize on distinct prey selection, hunting methods, habitat and/or nesting habits.[Kemp, A., & Kemp, M. (1998). ''Sasol Birds of Prey: Of Africa and Its Islands''. New Holland.] The larger booted eagles that dominate the avian food chain in Africa consists of martial eagles, Verreaux's eagle
Verreaux's eagle (''Aquila verreauxii'') is a large, mostly African, bird of prey. It is also called the black eagle, especially in southern Africa, not to be confused with the Indian black eagle (''Ictinaetus malayensis''), which lives far to t ...
s and crowned eagle
The crowned eagle, also known as the African crowned eagle or the crowned hawk-eagle (''Stephanoaetus coronatus''), is a large bird of prey found in sub-Saharan Africa; in Southern Africa it is restricted to eastern areas.Sinclair & Ryan (2003) ...
s, which due to their size and conspicuousness may lend themselves to comparisons. While prey species may overlap in these in southern Africa
Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number of ...
and some parts of east Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa:
Due to the historical ...
, where the prey size range of all three eagles averages , these three powerful eagles differ considerably in habitat preferences, nesting habits and hunting methods. The Verreaux's eagle nests in and hunts around rocky, mountainous kopje
An inselberg or monadnock () is an isolated rock hill, knob, ridge, or small mountain that rises abruptly from a gently sloping or virtually level surrounding plain.
In Southern Africa a similar formation of granite is known as a koppie, a ...
to be in close proximity to the much favored prey, rock hyrax
The rock hyrax (; ''Procavia capensis''), also called dassie, Cape hyrax, rock rabbit, and (in the King James Bible) coney, is a medium-sized terrestrial mammal native to Africa and the Middle East. Commonly referred to in South Africa as the da ...
es, which they mainly use contour-hunting (hugging the uneven ground to surprise the prey) to capture. The crowned eagle dwells mainly in mature forests, building nests in large interior trees, and is primarily a perch-hunter, watching and listening for monkeys and other prey over a long period. While all three are known to locally favor rock hyraxes, the nesting habitat differences where they overlap are sufficient to allow these birds not to effect one another.[ The average prey mass of Verreaux's eagle was similar to that martial eagles, with a pair of studies showing it ranges from .] The mean prey mass of crowned eagles in southern Africa
Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number of ...
also appears to be similar to that of martial eagles but in west Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Maurit ...
(i.e. Ivory Coast
Ivory Coast, also known as Côte d'Ivoire, officially the Republic of Côte d'Ivoire, is a country on the southern coast of West Africa. Its capital is Yamoussoukro, in the centre of the country, while its largest city and economic centre is ...
) it was considerably heavier at (which may well be the highest mean prey mass for any of the world's raptors). Elsewhere, mean prey masses for the larger booted eagles appears to be considerably smaller than in the larger African species, i.e. single studies for the Spanish imperial eagle
The Spanish imperial eagle (''Aquila adalberti''), also known as the Spanish eagle or Adalbert's eagle, is a species of eagle native to the Iberian Peninsula. The binomial commemorates Prince Adalbert of Bavaria. Due to its distinct “epaulet ...
(''Aquila adalberti'') and wedge-tailed eagle
The wedge-tailed eagle (''Aquila audax'') is the largest bird of prey in the continent of Australia. It is also found in southern New Guinea to the north and is distributed as far south as the state of Tasmania. Adults of this species have lon ...
s showed means of and , respectively, while a large number of extensive dietary studies for the golden eagle show its global mean prey mass is around .[
More similar in habitat and, locally, prey selection to martial eagles are three medium-sized eagles, the ]African hawk-eagle
The African hawk-eagle (''Aquila spilogaster'') is a large bird of prey. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family ''Accipitridae''. This species’ feathered legs mark it as a member of the Aquilinae subfamily.Lerner, H., Christidis, L., Gamauf, ...
(''Aquila spilogaster''), the tawny eagle
The tawny eagle (''Aquila rapax'') is a large bird of prey. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family ''Accipitridae''. Its heavily feathered legs mark it as a member of the subfamily Aquilinae, also known as booted eagles.Helbig, A. J., Kocum, ...
(''Aquila rapax'') and the bateleur
The bateleur (; ''Terathopius ecaudatus'') is a medium-sized eagle in the family Accipitridae. It is often considered a relative of the snake eagles and, like them, it is classified within the subfamily Circaetinae.Kemp, A. C., G. M. Kirwan, an ...
(''Terathopius ecaudatus'').[ The biology of martial eagles was compared extensively with that of these species in ]Tsavo East National Park
Tsavo East National Park is one of the oldest and largest parks in Kenya at 13,747 square kilometres. Situated in a semi-arid area previously known as the Taru Desert it opened in April 1948, and is located near the town of Voi in the Taita- ...
, Kenya
)
, national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
, ...
, where all four were known to prey on large numbers of Kirk's dik-dik
Kirk's dik-dik (''Madoqua kirkii'') is a small antelope native to Eastern Africa and one of four species of dik-dik antelope. It is believed to have six subspecies and possibly a seventh existing in southwest Africa. Dik-diks are herbivores, typi ...
s (albeit none of these took as many as did the martial eagles and some eaten by bateleurs and tawny eagles are probably scavenged). It was found that the bateleur and tawny eagle are even broader in their prey composition and take live prey more often of a smaller size, also often coming to and feeding on carrion (which is seldom seen in martial eagles) and pirating from other raptors, especially the tawny eagles. The African hawk-eagle takes fairly similar prey to the martial eagle but does not conflict with martial eagles considering its much smaller size and preference for slightly denser wooded areas. In Tsavo East, 29% of prey of tawny eagle and 21% of bateleur foods were the same as that of martial eagles. In east Africa, the breeding season differs mildly between these eagles with bateleurs nesting much earlier than the others and African hawk-eagles breeding peaking slightly later. Thus pressure on shared prey types such as dik-diks are exerted at different times of the year. While the bateleur and tawny eagle can kill prey weighing up to and the African hawk-eagle (being relatively large footed and clawed despite its smaller size) can kill prey of up to , these raptors are too small to regularly go after live prey as large in the prey spectrum of martial eagles, with the bateleur and tawny having talons relatively smaller even adjusted for their body size (the hawk-eagle's talons were relatively similar in proportion to their body size).[ Due to its large size and broad wings, martial eagles are not highly maneuverable in flight and are not infrequently robbed of their catches by these more agile and swift smaller eagles, particularly bold ]tawny eagle
The tawny eagle (''Aquila rapax'') is a large bird of prey. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family ''Accipitridae''. Its heavily feathered legs mark it as a member of the subfamily Aquilinae, also known as booted eagles.Helbig, A. J., Kocum, ...
s. Other raptors known to steal food from martial eagles include bateleur
The bateleur (; ''Terathopius ecaudatus'') is a medium-sized eagle in the family Accipitridae. It is often considered a relative of the snake eagles and, like them, it is classified within the subfamily Circaetinae.Kemp, A. C., G. M. Kirwan, an ...
s and even other large species such as Verreaux's eagles and lappet-faced vulture
The lappet-faced vulture or Nubian vulture (''Torgos tracheliotos'') is an Old World vulture belonging to the bird order Accipitriformes, which also includes eagles, kites, buzzards and hawks. It is the only member of the genus ''Torgos''. It i ...
s (''Torgos tracheliotos''). Considering their potential for aggressiveness in regards to prey pursuits, martial eagles often appear to be surprisingly passive in response to kleptoparasitism, especially if they are able to first fill their crop. This may be because they try to avoid unnecessary expenditures of energy in contention over food.[ ]Leopard
The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant species in the genus '' Panthera'', a member of the cat family, Felidae. It occurs in a wide range in sub-Saharan Africa, in some parts of Western and Central Asia, Southern Russia, a ...
s also rarely steal kills from martial eagles but may also be robbed of small kills by martial eagles, as may cheetah
The cheetah (''Acinonyx jubatus'') is a large cat native to Africa and central Iran. It is the fastest land animal, estimated to be capable of running at with the fastest reliably recorded speeds being , and as such has evolved specialized ...
s. In another case, a martial eagle stole a rock hyrax
The rock hyrax (; ''Procavia capensis''), also called dassie, Cape hyrax, rock rabbit, and (in the King James Bible) coney, is a medium-sized terrestrial mammal native to Africa and the Middle East. Commonly referred to in South Africa as the da ...
from a bearded vulture
The bearded vulture (''Gypaetus barbatus''), also known as the lammergeier and ossifrage, is a very large bird of prey and the only member of the genus ''Gypaetus''. Traditionally considered an Old World vulture, it actually forms a separate mi ...
(''Gypaetus barbatus'').[ Prey species are shared by a wide range of birds of prey, both other eagles and other, usually, larger raptors, and mammalian carnivores of many sizes that are too numerous to mention. Some mammalian carnivores such as ]caracal
The caracal (''Caracal caracal'') () is a medium-sized wild cat native to Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, and arid areas of Pakistan and northwestern India. It is characterised by a robust build, long legs, a short face, long tufted e ...
s have superficially similar diets to martial eagles. One other species worth noting is the Verreaux's eagle owl
Verreaux's eagle-owl (''Bubo lacteus''), also commonly known as the milky eagle owl or giant eagle owl, is a member of the family Strigidae. This species is widespread in sub-Saharan Africa. A member of the genus ''Bubo'', it is the largest Afric ...
(''Bubo lacteus''), as it is similarly the largest African owl, weighing about , with almost identical habitat preferences and distributional range as the martial eagle.[ Therefore, some consider the eagle owl to be the martial eagle's nocturnal ecological equivalent.][Hancock, P., & Weiersbye, I. (2015). ''Birds of Botswana''. Princeton University Press.] While there is considerable overlap in their diets, there are discrepancies as the eagle owl tends to hunt large numbers of hedgehog
A hedgehog is a spiny mammal of the subfamily Erinaceinae, in the eulipotyphlan family Erinaceidae. There are seventeen species of hedgehog in five genera found throughout parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa, and in New Zealand by introducti ...
s (not known in the eagle's diet) and occasionally high quantities of mole-rat Mole-rat or mole rat can refer to several groups of burrowing Old World rodents:
* Bathyergidae, a family of about 20 hystricognath species in six genera from Africa also called blesmols.
*'' Heterocephalus glaber'', the naked mole-rat.
* Spalaci ...
s. When considered this in combination with their different times of activity and the fact that the eagle owl weighs about half as much as the martial eagle, direct competition probably does not affect either predator in any considerable way.[Avery, G., Robertson, A.S., Palmer, N.G., & Prins, A.J. (1985). ''Prey of giant eagle owls in the de Hoop nature reserve, Cape province, and some observations on hunting strategy''. ''Ostrich'', 56(1-3), 117-122.]
The martial eagle infrequently hunts other birds of prey, perhaps doing so only slightly more often than do crowned eagle
The crowned eagle, also known as the African crowned eagle or the crowned hawk-eagle (''Stephanoaetus coronatus''), is a large bird of prey found in sub-Saharan Africa; in Southern Africa it is restricted to eastern areas.Sinclair & Ryan (2003) ...
s and Verreaux's eagle
Verreaux's eagle (''Aquila verreauxii'') is a large, mostly African, bird of prey. It is also called the black eagle, especially in southern Africa, not to be confused with the Indian black eagle (''Ictinaetus malayensis''), which lives far to t ...
s.[ In comparison, the temperate-zone-dwelling ]golden eagle
The golden eagle (''Aquila chrysaetos'') is a bird of prey living in the Northern Hemisphere. It is the most widely distributed species of eagle. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae. They are one of the best-known bird of p ...
is a frequent predator of other birds of prey. This may be due to more scarce prey resources in colder regions forcing eagles to pursue difficult prey such as this more frequently, whereas booted eagles in rich Africa biospheres may not need to do so as much.[Ellis, D.H., Tsengeg, P., Whitlock, P. & Ellis, M.H. 2000. ''Predators as prey at a Golden Eagle Aquila chrysaetos eyrie in Mongolia''. Ibis, 142: 139 – 141.] Nonetheless, a somewhat diverse range of raptorial birds have been identified as prey for martial eagles: the lanner falcon
The lanner falcon (''Falco biarmicus'') is a medium-sized bird of prey that breeds in Africa, southeast Europe and just into Asia. It prefers open habitat and is mainly resident, but some birds disperse more widely after the breeding season. A l ...
(''Falco biarmicus''), the peregrine falcon
The peregrine falcon (''Falco peregrinus''), also known as the peregrine, and historically as the duck hawk in North America, is a Cosmopolitan distribution, cosmopolitan bird of prey (Bird of prey, raptor) in the family (biology), family Falco ...
(''Falco peregrinus''), the spotted eagle owl (''Bubo africanus'') (with a surprisingly large number of 6 found at one nest in Tsavo East), the pale chanting goshawk
The pale chanting goshawk (''Melierax canorus'') is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae.
This hawk breeds in southern Africa and is a resident species of dry, open semi-desert with 75 cm or less annual rainfall. It is commonly seen ...
(''Melierax canorus''), the hooded vulture
The hooded vulture (''Necrosyrtes monachus'') is an Old World vulture in the order Accipitriformes, which also includes eagles, kites, buzzards and hawks. It is the only member of the genus ''Necrosyrtes,'' which is sister to the larger ''Gyps ...
(''Necrosyrtes monachus'') (in one case after a protracted aerial battle), the white-headed vulture (''Trigonoceps occipitalis'') and even Africa's largest bird of prey, the Cape vulture
The Cape vulture (''Gyps coprotheres''), also known as Cape griffon and Kolbe's vulture, is an Old World vulture in the family '' Accipitridae''. It is endemic to southern Africa, and lives mainly in South Africa, Lesotho, Botswana, and in some p ...
(''Gyps coprotheres'').[ As ]apex predator
An apex predator, also known as a top predator, is a predator at the top of a food chain, without natural predators of its own.
Apex predators are usually defined in terms of trophic dynamics, meaning that they occupy the highest trophic lev ...
s, martial eagles are themselves largely invulnerable to predation. A video exists that purportedly depicts a leopard
The leopard (''Panthera pardus'') is one of the five extant species in the genus '' Panthera'', a member of the cat family, Felidae. It occurs in a wide range in sub-Saharan Africa, in some parts of Western and Central Asia, Southern Russia, a ...
killing a martial eagle but this eagle was misidentified as it actually features a leopard preying on an immature African fish eagle
The African fish eagle (''Haliaeetus vocifer'') or the African sea eagle, is a large species of eagle found throughout sub-Saharan Africa wherever large bodies of open water with an abundant food supply occur. It is the national bird of Malawi, Na ...
(''Haliaeetus vociferus'') (and, at that, one that was possibly grounded for unknown reasons). There are, however, verified (if rare) cases of caracals preying on sleeping martial eagles at night, by climbing trees and pouncing in an ambush. Additionally a case was reported where a honey badger
The honey badger (''Mellivora capensis''), also known as the ratel ( or ), is a mammal widely distributed in Africa, Southwest Asia, and the Indian subcontinent. Because of its wide range and occurrence in a variety of habitats, it is liste ...
killed an incubating adult martial eagle. It is possible that leopards may too ambush sleeping eagles, but post-fledgling martial eagles are known to be highly wary, and healthy individuals a great majority of the time will successfully evade potential dangers by day.[ Predation on nests of martial eagles, beyond those by humans, are little known, with no verified depredations known in the literature, but are likely to occur.][Herholdt, J.J., & Kemp, A.C. (1997). ''Breeding status and ecology of the martial eagle in the Kalahari Gemsbok National Park, South Africa''. Ostrich, 68(2-4), 80-85.]
Territoriality
Despite their rather aerial existence, the territorial display of adult martial eagles is considered relatively unspectacular. Their display often consists of nothing more than the adult male or both members of a pair circling and calling over their home range area or perching and calling near nestlings. Compared to other large African booted eagles, this species infrequently “sky-dances” (i.e. undulation and dramatic movements high in the sky), but some are known with presumably the male martial eagle only engaging in shallow undulations.[Hustler, K., & Howells, W.W. (1987). ''Breeding periodicity, productivity and conservation of the Martial Eagle''. Ostrich, 58(3), 135-138.] During mutual circling, the adult female may turn and present talons. Martial eagles are not known to “cartwheel” which is when two eagles lock feet and circle down, falling almost to the ground, an action that was once thought to be part of breeding displays but is now generally considered territorial in nature.[ The territory of martial eagles can vary greatly in size. The average home range is estimated to be in ]east Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa:
Due to the historical ...
and southern Africa
Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number of ...
, with mean distances between nests of approximately .[ In ]Kruger National Park
Kruger National Park is a South African National Park and one of the largest game reserves in Africa. It covers an area of in the provinces of Limpopo and Mpumalanga in northeastern South Africa, and extends from north to south and from ea ...
, the average home range of pairs is with an average nest-spacing of . In Namib-Naukluft National Park
The Namib-Naukluft Park is a national park in western Namibia, situated between the coast of the Atlantic Ocean and the edge of the Great Escarpment. It encompasses part of the Namib Desert (considered the world's oldest desert), the Naukluft mo ...
, Namibia
Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlantic Ocean. It shares land borders with Zambia and Angola to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south and ea ...
, the home range size was per pair.[ Within ]Kalahari Gemsbok National Park
Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park is a large wildlife preserve and conservation area in southern Africa.
The park straddles the border between South Africa and Botswana and comprises two adjoining national parks:
* Kalahari Gemsbok National Park in S ...
, South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
, nest spacing ranged from in the Auob river
The Auob River is a tributary of the Nossob River in the Northern Cape province of South Africa.
Headwaters
* in Namibia
Namibia (, ), officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country in Southern Africa. Its western border is the Atlan ...
basin to in the interior dunes area.[ In the ]Nyika Plateau
The Nyika Plateau lies in northern Malawi, with a small portion in north eastern Zambia. Most of it lies at elevations of between , the highest point being at Nganda Peak. It is roughly a diamond in shape, with a long north–south axis of about ...
of northern Malawi
Malawi (; or aláwi Tumbuka: ''Malaŵi''), officially the Republic of Malawi, is a landlocked country in Southeastern Africa that was formerly known as Nyasaland. It is bordered by Zambia to the west, Tanzania to the north and northeast ...
, the average nest spacing was , with only one martial eagle nest recorded in an area that contained four crowned eagle nests. In protected areas of west Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of Africa. The United Nations defines Western Africa as the 16 countries of Benin, Burkina Faso, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Mali, Maurit ...
, the average home range size of martial eagles is about . Somewhat surprisingly, considering their relative scarcity in west Africa overall in comparison in east and southern Africa, home ranges may be just as large in some parts of Kenya
)
, national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
, ...
, at up to , and the largest known home ranges sizes known come from southern Africa. These are from Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...
’s Hwange National Park
Hwange National Park (formerly Wankie Game Reserve) is the largest natural reserve in Zimbabwe. It is around 14,600 sq km in area. It lies in the northwest of the country, just off the main road between Bulawayo and Victoria Falls. The neares ...
where the home ranges may be anywhere from , with average spacing between nests of . By the 1990s, approximately 100 pairs were estimated to breed in Hwange.[ This disparity in territory sizes are likely due to regional differences in food supply, persecution rates and habitat disturbance.][
]
Breeding
Martial eagles may breed in various months in the different parts of their range. They are considered a fairly early breeder compared to the average for sub-Saharan Africa birds of prey but breed much less early than bateleur
The bateleur (; ''Terathopius ecaudatus'') is a medium-sized eagle in the family Accipitridae. It is often considered a relative of the snake eagles and, like them, it is classified within the subfamily Circaetinae.Kemp, A. C., G. M. Kirwan, an ...
s.[ The mating season is in November through April in ]Senegal
Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...
, January to June in Sudan
Sudan ( or ; ar, السودان, as-Sūdān, officially the Republic of the Sudan ( ar, جمهورية السودان, link=no, Jumhūriyyat as-Sūdān), is a country in Northeast Africa. It shares borders with the Central African Republic t ...
, August to July in northeast Africa
Northeast Africa, or ''Northeastern Africa'' or Northern East Africa as it was known in the past, is a geographic regional term used to refer to the countries of Africa situated in and around the Red Sea. The region is intermediate between North ...
and almost any month in east Africa
East Africa, Eastern Africa, or East of Africa, is the eastern subregion of the African continent. In the United Nations Statistics Division scheme of geographic regions, 10-11-(16*) territories make up Eastern Africa:
Due to the historical ...
and southern Africa
Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number of ...
, though mostly in April–November. The breeding season may thus begin in various parts of the range in a wet season or the earlier or later part of the local dry season so that no part of the brooding stage will occur during heavy rains.[ They build their nests in large trees, often larger than other trees in the woodlot. The nest is usually placed them in the main fork of tree at off the ground, though nests have been recorded at anywhere from high, in the highest cases on top of the tree canopy. Tree species is unimportant with the eagles seeming to prefer any type that is difficult to climb, such as those that have thorny branches, few lower branches or smoother bark.][ In ]Kalahari Gemsbok National Park
Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park is a large wildlife preserve and conservation area in southern Africa.
The park straddles the border between South Africa and Botswana and comprises two adjoining national parks:
* Kalahari Gemsbok National Park in S ...
of South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
, almost all nests were in the highly thorny, ''Acacia
''Acacia'', commonly known as the wattles or acacias, is a large genus of shrubs and trees in the subfamily Mimosoideae of the pea family Fabaceae. Initially, it comprised a group of plant species native to Africa and Australasia. The genus na ...
''-like tree, ''Vachellia erioloba
''Vachellia erioloba'', the camel thorn, giraffe thorn, or Kameeldoring in Afrikaans, still more commonly known as ''Acacia erioloba'', is a tree of southern Africa in the family Fabaceae. Its preferred habitat is the deep dry sandy soils in pa ...
'', in savanna areas.[ Most nests in ]southern Africa
Southern Africa is the southernmost subregion of the African continent, south of the Congo and Tanzania. The physical location is the large part of Africa to the south of the extensive Congo River basin. Southern Africa is home to a number of ...
often are at a height of less than .[ Often trees used are on the sides of cliffs, ridges, valley or hilltop, with one nest having been found within a cave.][ In the ]karoo
The Karoo ( ; from the Afrikaans borrowing of the South Khoekhoe !Orakobab or Khoemana word ''ǃ’Aukarob'' "Hardveld") is a semi-desert natural region of South Africa. No exact definition of what constitutes the Karoo is available, so its ext ...
of South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
, they have also nested on electric-power pylons. Locally, with the sometimes epidemic levels of clear-cutting of old-growth trees, such pylons may provide a fairly suitable alternative that the eagles can utilize in absence of woodlands.[''Electric eagles of the Karoo''](_blank)
, Koos De Goede and Andrew Jenkins(2001). The nest of the martial eagle is a large and conspicuous construction of sticks. In the first year of construction, the nest will average in diameter
In geometry, a diameter of a circle is any straight line segment that passes through the center of the circle and whose endpoints lie on the circle. It can also be defined as the longest chord of the circle. Both definitions are also valid for ...
and measure about deep. After regular use over several years, the nests can regularly measure in excess of in both diameter and depth. The nest may be lightly lined with green leaves.[ The central depression of the nest averages about across.][ The nest of martial eagles average slightly smaller than those of ]crowned eagle
The crowned eagle, also known as the African crowned eagle or the crowned hawk-eagle (''Stephanoaetus coronatus''), is a large bird of prey found in sub-Saharan Africa; in Southern Africa it is restricted to eastern areas.Sinclair & Ryan (2003) ...
s and, compared to other large eagle tree nests, are much broader than they are deep, relatively, especially when newly constructed.[ The construction of new nests can take several months and, in some cases, pairs can take up to two months where they appear to return to the nests daily but contribute only green leaves to line the nest. The repair of an existing nest takes on average two to three weeks. Most pairs will usually just use one nest (as opposed to temperate-zone eagles which may have several alternate nests), with up to 21 years of continuous use for one nest recorded, but pairs constructing a second nest are not infrequent either. One exceptionally prolific pair built or repaired 7 nests during 17 years in ]Zimbabwe
Zimbabwe (), officially the Republic of Zimbabwe, is a landlocked country located in Southeast Africa, between the Zambezi and Limpopo Rivers, bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the south-west, Zambia to the north, and Mozam ...
, although they only nested 5 of the 17 years.[
Martial eagles have a slow breeding rate, laying usually one ]egg
An egg is an organic vessel grown by an animal to carry a possibly fertilized egg cell (a zygote) and to incubate from it an embryo within the egg until the embryo has become an animal fetus that can survive on its own, at which point the a ...
(rarely two) every two years. Clutches of two have only been reported only in South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
and once in Zambia
Zambia (), officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country at the crossroads of Central Africa, Central, Southern Africa, Southern and East Africa, although it is typically referred to as being in Southern Africa at its most cent ...
, and the younger sibling probably never survives or possibly ever even hatches unless the first egg or hatchling dies.[ Martial eagle eggs are rounded oval and are white to pale greenish-blue, variously. Sometimes they may be handsomely marked with brown and grey blotches. The eggs of martial eagles measure on average among 57 eggs, with ranges of in egg length by in width. Their eggs are the largest of any booted eagle, slightly larger on average than those of ]golden
Golden means made of, or relating to gold.
Golden may also refer to:
Places United Kingdom
*Golden, in the parish of Probus, Cornwall
* Golden Cap, Dorset
*Golden Square, Soho, London
*Golden Valley, a valley on the River Frome in Gloucestershi ...
or Verreaux's eagle
Verreaux's eagle (''Aquila verreauxii'') is a large, mostly African, bird of prey. It is also called the black eagle, especially in southern Africa, not to be confused with the Indian black eagle (''Ictinaetus malayensis''), which lives far to t ...
and considerably larger than those of crowned eagle
The crowned eagle, also known as the African crowned eagle or the crowned hawk-eagle (''Stephanoaetus coronatus''), is a large bird of prey found in sub-Saharan Africa; in Southern Africa it is restricted to eastern areas.Sinclair & Ryan (2003) ...
s. The egg is incubated for 45 to 53 days. The female does a great majority of the incubation, as is typical, but the male may relieve her and incubate for a maximum of three hours in a day.[ If the nest is approached by humans, the female tends to sit tight, often only flying off once the nest is reached. Unlike the crowned eagle, the martial eagle is not known to protectively attack animals such as humans who come too close to the nest, usually just unobtrusively abandoning the nest until the person leaves the area, in a similar fashion to '' Aquila'' eagles. However, if maimed or grounded themselves, martial eagles are known to viciously turn on their human tormentors until they are finished off, in some anecdotal claims of early hunting journals, an occasion hunting accident have resulted in martial eagles tearing the flesh down to the bone on the legs of game wardens and even broken arms with their powerful grip. Although these accounts are quite possibly exaggerated, the ferocity of cornered martial eagles may have some influence on its name.][ Once the eggs hatch, the male of a pair may rarely brood the young but has never been seen to the feed the chick and, for the most part, the male just brings prey for the female to distribute between herself and the nestling. The female attendance at the nest drops considerably at seven weeks after hatching, at which point she resumes hunting. Then, the female may become main food provider but males will also make deliveries. Despite her lower attendance, she still roosts on or near the nest until the nestling stage is done. Despite the occasional capture of food, the male usually is rarely seen near the nest after the female resumes hunting.][ In one unusual case, a first or second year plumaged male martial eagle was seen assisting an adult female in the way that an adult male would but it was not known if he had merely replaced a deceased male that had sired the young or had actually bred with the female, the following year the young male was verified to mate with the female. Cases of immature plumaged eagles breeding are often considered indicative of stress on a species’ regional population.][
The newly hatched chick tends to have a two-tone down pattern which is dark grey above and white below, which lightens at about four weeks of age, with the down becoming pale-grey. At 7 weeks, the feathers mostly cover the down and do so completely by 10 weeks except that at that stage the flight feathers are underdeveloped.][ The new chick is usually quite weak and feeble, becoming more active only after they are 20 days old.][ The nestlings usually first feeds itself at 9 to 11 weeks old, while it tends to engage in vigorous wing exercises performed from 10 weeks on. Like ]crowned eagle
The crowned eagle, also known as the African crowned eagle or the crowned hawk-eagle (''Stephanoaetus coronatus''), is a large bird of prey found in sub-Saharan Africa; in Southern Africa it is restricted to eastern areas.Sinclair & Ryan (2003) ...
s, males seem to be more active than female youngsters and probably fly sooner too. In one case, a male fledged prematurely at 75 days, however it is possible that male fledging can occur at less than 90 days.[ Most estimations place fledging as occurring at 96 to 109 days, on average at about 99 days of age. However, after making their first flight, the fledgling usually return to roost in the nest for several days, before gradually moving away from it.][ Despite increasing signs of independence (such as flight and beginning to practice hunting), in extreme cases, juvenile birds may remain in the care of their parents for a further 6 to 12 months. A typical post-fledgling care stage will continue for about 3 months after fledging. Despite its ability to fly, it will continue to beg for food from both parents as they are seen. Sometimes, the young eagle from the prior mating season may still be present at the onset of the next breeding season. Juvenile eagles may return to their nest site at as old as 3 years of age, but are unlikely to be fed.][ On the other hand, juvenile martial eagle soar much more readily than crowned eagles and, unlike that species, have been recorded traveling up to several miles from the nest 3 to 4 months after making their first flight.][ Due to this long dependence period, these eagles can usually only mate in alternate years.
Breeding success is variable and is probably driven by a combination of factors, including prey supply, rainfall levels and distance from human activity.][ In ]Kenya
)
, national_anthem = "Ee Mungu Nguvu Yetu"()
, image_map =
, map_caption =
, image_map2 =
, capital = Nairobi
, coordinates =
, largest_city = Nairobi
, ...
in the 1960s, breeding success at producing a fledgling was 72% for all eggs and 48% for all possible attempts. Here, various pairs reared between 0.25 and 1 young per pair, averaging 0.55.[ In the Namibian Nest Record Scheme, where young were monitored for more than two months, success has also been estimated at 83%, i.e. five out of six attempts. At ]Kalahari Gemsbok National Park
Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park is a large wildlife preserve and conservation area in southern Africa.
The park straddles the border between South Africa and Botswana and comprises two adjoining national parks:
* Kalahari Gemsbok National Park in S ...
, South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
, 38 of 53 martial eagle breeding attempts were in consecutive years and fledged an average 0.43 young per year.[ In 63 pair years, an average of 0.51 fledglings per pair was found for the former ]Transvaal province
The Province of the Transvaal ( af, Provinsie van Transvaal), commonly referred to as the Transvaal (; ), was a province of South Africa from 1910 until 1994, when a new constitution subdivided it following the end of apartheid. The name "Trans ...