Black Eagle

The black eagle (Ictinaetus malaiensis ) is a bird of prey. Like all eagles, it is in the family Accipitridae, and is the only member of the genus Ictinaetus. They soar over forests in the hilly regions of tropical and subtropical South and Southeast Asia, as well as southeastern China. They hunt mammals and birds, particularly in their nests. They are easily identified by their widely splayed and long primary "fingers",

General Information:

Common Name:Black Eagle
Scientific Name:Ictinaetus malaiensis
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Class: Aves
Order:Accipitriformes
Family:Accipitridae

Description

The black eagle (Ictinaetus malaiensis ) is a bird of prey. Like all eagles, it is in the family Accipitridae, and is the only member of the genus Ictinaetus. They soar over forests in the hilly regions of tropical and subtropical South and Southeast Asia, as well as southeastern China. They hunt mammals and birds, particularly in their nests. They are easily identified by their widely splayed and long primary "fingers",

Distribution

The black eagle breeds in tropical and subtropical Asia. Race perniger (Hodgson, 1836) is found in the Himalayan foothills west through Nepal into the Indian states of Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir, and in the forests of the Eastern and Western Ghats in peninsular India and Sri Lanka. The bird's westernmost extent is from Gujarat, especially in the forested areas in southern and eastern Gujarat. The species also extends into the Aravalli range of northwestern India. The nominate race malaiensis (Temminck, 1822) is found in Burma, southern China (Yunnan, Fujian) and Taiwan, into Southeast Asia.

Habitat

Black eagles occur through most parts of sub-Saharan Africa where mountainous habitat correlate with a high density of their main prey, rock hyrax Procavia capensis, and as far north as Israel. In Southern Africa their most notable absence is from most of Botswana and eastern Namibia where there are no suitable mountains due to the Kalahari Desert. In some areas, such as the Sandveld in the Western Cape of South Africa, the diet has become highly diversified and mole-rats and angulate tortoise are an important component of the diet.

Mating Habits

The courtship display involves steep dives with folded wings swooping up in a U shape into a vertical stall. They build a platform nest, 3 to 4 feet wide, on a tall tree overlooking a steep valley. One or two white eggs which are blotched in brown, and mauve may be laid during the nesting season between January and April. The nest site may be reused year after year.

Diet

Black Eagles eat mammals such as bats, rats, squirrels, flying squirrels, along with other small animals including reptiles, frogs, insects, and some birds. They are also known to snatch up entire nests, eating nestlings and eggs. They hunt by soaring over forests, creeks and rivers, ridges, and other open areas..

Threats

It is not threatened but uncommon in large areas in its distribution.
Shrinking of forested areas due to large-scale extraction has reduced its earlier range.

IUCN Status

Least Concern