South African wildlife – Martial eagle

ByEd Yong
October 9, 2009

This is the martial eagle, one of Africa’s largest eagles* and a truly formidable predator, even occassionally killing small antelope like duiker. This adult was a fair distance away but the presence of large nests gives away the location of trees where they might be found perching.

* I say “one of” because books differ as to whether the title belongs to the martial or the similarly sized crowned eagle. A comparison of various field guides suggested that the crowned is longer but the martial wins in terms of weight and wingspan (which has an impressive maximum of 8.5 feet).

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