Short-toed Eagle
Short-toed Snake Eagle / Short-toed Eagle (Circaetus gallicus)
During a trip to Tarifa, Spain in October 2019, I photographed this remarkable raptor while watching thousands of migrating birds crossing the Strait of Gibraltar on their way to Africa for the winter. While revisiting my archives after recently sharing on Flickr a photo of juvenile Short-toed Eagle, I found several images worth turning into a 33 second slideshow.
Conservation status: Least Concern (IUCN), though populations are declining in some regions due to habitat loss.
Size: A large eagle with a wingspan of 160–185 cm.
Diet: A specialist predator of snakes and other reptiles (especially lizards), though it may occasionally take small mammals and birds. It is often seen hovering and scanning open ground before striking
.
Behavior: Soars with wings held flat, circling high while searching for prey. Solitary when hunting, but large numbers can gather during migration at key bottlenecks such as Gibraltar or the Bosphorus.
Breeding: Nests in tall trees, cliffs, or sometimes even man-made structures.
Short-toed Eagle
Short-toed Snake Eagle / Short-toed Eagle (Circaetus gallicus)
During a trip to Tarifa, Spain in October 2019, I photographed this remarkable raptor while watching thousands of migrating birds crossing the Strait of Gibraltar on their way to Africa for the winter. While revisiting my archives after recently sharing on Flickr a photo of juvenile Short-toed Eagle, I found several images worth turning into a 33 second slideshow.
Conservation status: Least Concern (IUCN), though populations are declining in some regions due to habitat loss.
Size: A large eagle with a wingspan of 160–185 cm.
Diet: A specialist predator of snakes and other reptiles (especially lizards), though it may occasionally take small mammals and birds. It is often seen hovering and scanning open ground before striking
.
Behavior: Soars with wings held flat, circling high while searching for prey. Solitary when hunting, but large numbers can gather during migration at key bottlenecks such as Gibraltar or the Bosphorus.
Breeding: Nests in tall trees, cliffs, or sometimes even man-made structures.