African Hawk Eagles
Birds of Prey ... The Sport of Falconry
The African Hawk Eagle (Aquila spilogaster) is a large bird of prey. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae.
Recent DNA research resulted in this species being moved to the genus Aquila from Hieraaetus.
Distribution / Range
African Hawk Eagle breeds in tropical Africa south of the Sahara. It is a bird of wooded hills, which builds a stick nest about 3 feet in diameter in the fork of a large tree. The clutch is generally one or two eggs.
Description
African Hawk Eagle is a largish eagle at about 55-65cm in length.
The upperparts are blackish. The body underparts are white, heavily streaked with black. The underwing flight feathers are white with a black trailing edge. The underwing coverts are mostly black with white spots.
Sexes are similar, but young birds are brown above and rufous coloration replaces the black underparts of the adult.
Diet / Feeding
The African Hawk Eagle hunts small mammals, reptiles, and birds up to the size of a francolin.
Calls / Vocalizations
The call is a shrill kluu-kluu-kluu.
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