331:, with a total length of 44 to 57 cm (17 to 22 in) and has a wingspan of 106 to 137 cm (3 ft 6 in to 4 ft 6 in). A small sample of males have been known to weigh from 615 to 714 g (1.356 to 1.574 lb) and females weigh from 879 to 1,150 g (1.938 to 2.535 lb). The average weight of four adult males was 662.5 g (1.461 lb) while that of 10 adult females was 1,017.5 g (2.243 lb), juvenile Ayres's being some 5% lighter in spite of slightly greater wing sizes. The
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from 60 to 132 cm (24 to 52 in) across. Eggs are laid from April to
September, peaking in April and May. A single egg is laid, measuring on average 61.2 by 49.8 mm (2.41 by 1.96 in). The female is almost solely responsible for incubation which takes about 43 days, the male brings her food every two to three days. The chick is fed almost daily, fledging at about 73 days old and becoming fully independent from its parents approximately three months after fledging.
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541:. They are an exceptional agile and fast eagle and can overtake many birds in flight. The Ayres's hawk-eagle predominantly hunt quite small birds, typically weighing from 40 to 200 g (1.4 to 7.1 oz), and can sometimes include nestling birds in their diet. However, it quite commonly takes heavier birds than in the aforementioned weight range, including
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Ayres's hawk-eagle is a monogamous, territorial solitary nester. The nest consists of a large platform of a twigs and sticks, lined with green leaves and typically concealed in the fork within a well-leafed, large tree, usually from 9 to 32 m (30 to 105 ft) above the ground. The nest can be
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phase, which is mostly black with white markings. The juvenile Ayres's hawk-eagle is dark brown on the back and coverts, similarly dark on the crown, slightly paler necked, largely white below from the throat to the crissum and legs with sparse dark brown markings variably along the chest, belly and
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and feet yellow, the bill is bluish horn coloured becoming paler towards the base, with a black tip. This species has a small but at times pronounced crest. The males are smaller than the females which are also darker and usually more densely spotted on the underparts, and have a smaller amount of
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are black. The underparts are white, with heavy dark brown spots and blotches on the breast and belly, becoming sparser on thighs and vent. The legs are well-feathered and pure white. The under-wing coverts are brown marked with white, the under side of flight feathers is dark and heavily barred
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length is from 175 to 185 mm (6.9 to 7.3 in) and from 56 to 62 cm (22 to 24 in) in males and 205 to 223 mm (8.1 to 8.8 in) and from 65 to 80 mm (2.6 to 3.1 in) in females. The species thus manifests quite strong
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which is larger and lankier with a more protruding head, a longer tail, more sparsely marked underparts, and has more heavily marked wings with a white window above. It shares white "landing lights" at the fore of the wings with the similarly sized
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flanks. When maturing, the young hawk-eagles often manifest a duskier, browner colour with somewhat of a rufous cast from below before moulting in its mature, adult plumage. Mostly the species is considered confusable with the
585:(LC) by the IUCN, due to its large range and its numbers, while small, appearing stable at the present time. The estimated global population is only 1000 to 10,000 individuals. The main threat faced by the species is
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on the rear toe is from 27.9 to 36.3 mm (1.10 to 1.43 in), averaging 29.5 mm (1.16 in) in males and 34.4 mm (1.35 in) in females, quite large for the small size of the eagle.
910:
Dewhurst, C. E., & van
Someren, C. (1988). Observation on the breeding ecology of Ayres' hawk eagle Hieraaetus ayresii at Karen, Nairobi, Kenya. GABAR., 3(2), 85-93.
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800:, version 1.0. In Birds of the World (J. del Hoyo, A. Elliott, J. Sargatal, D. A. Christie, and E. de Juana, Editors). Cornell Lab of Ornithology, Ithaca, NY, USA.
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in the core south-central
African part of their distribution. It is not typically a forest dwelling species and prefers mature woodland among often irregular,
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is from 20 to 31 mm (0.79 to 1.22 in), averaging 21.3 mm (0.84 in) in males and 25.4 mm (1.00 in) in females. The enlarged
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841:
Hartley, R. R., & Mundy, P. J. (2003). Morphometrics and status of Ayres's Hawk-eagle in
Zimbabwe. Journal of Raptor Research, 37(1), 44-54.
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is 326 to 345 mm (12.8 to 13.6 in) and from 360 to 420 mm (14 to 17 in) in males and females, respectively. The tail and
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but that species is usually rather differently marked overall (either paler and browner or all dark in dark morphs) and also similarly sized
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are mentioned as a confusion species but sparrowhawks are rather differently proportioned with bare, dull green-yellow legs.
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habitat further south, and probably into coastal East Africa; as the rains cause the leaves to emerge turning woodland into
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The adult male has blackish upperparts which are mottled with white, and usually has a white forehead and
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to intercept it in mid air. Other than birds it has been recorded as catching a few mammals including
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440:. A similar north to south movement is expected in west Africa, where species has been recorded as a
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Ayres's hawk-eagle is a bird hunter, almost to the exclusion of any other type of prey, especially
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517:-like highly aerial method for hunting birds on the wing, an aptitude it shares with the Asian
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in favor of the female, which does not overlap in standard measurements with the smaller male.
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The Ayres's hawk-eagle is a medium-sized raptor but quite a small eagle, about the weight of a
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Newman, K (1998) Newman's Birds of
Southern Africa. Halfway House: Southern Book Publishers.
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Although Ayres's hawk-eagle is an uncommon bird throughout its range, it is classified as
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The booted eagles (Aves: Accipitridae): perspectives in evolutionary biology
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Ayres's hawk-eagle has a patchy sub-Saharan distribution ranging from
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lacking any noticeable grey patch. The eyes are yellow to orange, the
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of woodland. Furthermore, it is persecuted at times for hunting down
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859:. University of London, University College London (United Kingdom).
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Whose Bird? Men and Women
Commemorated in the Common Names of Birds
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albeit with a slightly greater length and wingspan more akin to a
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The adult Ayres's hawk-eagle is richly bicolored, having a nearly
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terrain. Occasionally but not regularly they may habituate to
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In the rainy season moves out of denser and taller deciduous
452:, albeit unconfirmed. It tends to occur around woodlands of
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Global Raptor
Information Network. 2021. Species account:
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Kemp, A. C., P. F. D. Boesman, and J. S. Marks (2020).
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white on the forehead and supercilium. There are two
250:. It is native to African woodlands. Its name honors
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look with extensive dark speckling on the underbody.
942:
925:
Species text in The Atlas of
Southern African Birds
890:"Aquila ayresii (Ayres' hawk-eagle, Ayres' eagle)"
640:10.2305/IUCN.UK.2017-1.RLTS.T22696103A111817606.en
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529:. Once a bird has been singled out, the eagle
481:. Ayres's hawk-eagles tend to be rare in hyper
424:of central Africa into more open albeit treed
8:
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377:. Its central range is from the southern
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753:Ferguson-Lees, J.; Christie, D. (2001).
709:"Ayress Hawk-Eagle (Hieraaetus ayresii)"
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682:. London: Christopher Helm. p. 33.
923:(Ayres's hawk-eagle = ) Ayres' eagle -
851:
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798:Ayres's Hawk-Eagle (Hieraaetus ayresii)
602:
561:and even other birds of prey including
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678:Beolens, Bo; Watkins, Michael (2003).
290:, the normal as described above and a
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521:. Favored in diet in some areas are
1267:Taxa named by John Henry Gurney Sr.
1252:Birds of prey of Sub-Saharan Africa
1242:IUCN Red List least concern species
626:IUCN Red List of Threatened Species
810:Dunning, John B. Jr., ed. (2008).
14:
870:Ayres's Hawk-eagle Aquila ayresii
813:CRC Handbook of Avian Body Masses
892:. Iziko: Museums of South Africa
485:and, of course, treeless areas.
379:Democratic Republic of the Congo
73:
615:BirdLife International (2017).
1:
759:. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt.
874:http://www.globalraptors.org
816:(2nd ed.). CRC Press.
551:white-faced whistling ducks
1283:
633:: e.T22696103A111817606.
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204:Ayres's hawk-eagle Range
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70:Scientific classification
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369:, and south to northern
357:Distribution and habitat
1257:Birds described in 1862
385:down almost throughout
238:), also referred to as
547:African grey hornbills
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855:Parry, S. J. (2001).
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221:(Gurney, JH Sr, 1862)
756:Raptors of the World
519:rufous-bellied eagle
242:, is a medium-sized
577:Conservation status
401:as well as much of
40:Conservation status
1219:Hieraaetus-ayresii
1063:hieraaetus-ayresii
1001:hieraaetus-ayresii
988:Hieraaetus_ayresii
974:Hieraaetus ayresii
944:Hieraaetus ayresii
872:. Downloaded from
619:Hieraaetus ayresii
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497:Juvenile in flight
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306:black sparrowhawks
297:African hawk-eagle
278:secondary feathers
235:Hieraaetus ayresii
230:Ayres's hawk-eagle
179:Hieraaetus ayresii
24:Ayres' hawk-eagle
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1188:Open Tree of Life
936:Taxon identifiers
823:978-1-4200-6444-5
711:. Planet of Birds
342:sexual dimorphism
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373:and northeast
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543:rock pigeons
500:
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455:Brachystegia
453:
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375:South Africa
363:Sierra Leone
360:
322:
302:booted eagle
267:
258:Thomas Ayres
248:Accipitridae
244:bird of prey
240:Ayres' eagle
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137:Accipitridae
18:
1123:iNaturalist
968:Wikispecies
646:12 November
559:guineafowls
553:, assorted
475:plantations
409:, northern
350:hallux claw
346:Bill length
270:supercilium
264:Description
1247:Hieraaetus
1236:Categories
1214:Xeno-canto
896:23 October
715:23 October
666:1868127680
597:References
555:francolins
539:fruit bats
399:Mozambique
333:wing chord
292:melanistic
148:Hieraaetus
511:Aquilinae
422:woodlands
155:Species:
93:Kingdom:
87:Eukaryota
1201:Species+
1167:22696103
1141:11407429
1027:22696103
1022:BirdLife
959:Q1260400
953:Wikidata
461:Baikiaea
444:west to
415:Zimbabwe
411:Botswana
391:Tanzania
365:east to
210:Synonyms
133:Family:
107:Chordata
103:Phylum:
97:Animalia
83:Domain:
60:IUCN 3.1
1115:2480689
1089:1048924
1076:ayheag1
1037:ayheag1
1009:Avibase
587:cutting
567:shikras
507:pigeons
489:Biology
446:Senegal
442:vagrant
430:forests
426:savanna
407:Namibia
371:Namibia
367:Somalia
317:piebald
189:, 1862)
143:Genus:
123:Order:
113:Class:
58: (
1262:Eagles
1193:283158
1180:252783
1154:560441
1097:EURING
996:ARKive
820:
763:
686:
664:
537:, and
531:stoops
515:falcon
471:Acacia
450:Gambia
403:Angola
395:Zambia
383:Uganda
337:tarsus
288:phases
1136:IRMNG
1102:32350
1071:eBird
1050:3LKLL
1034:BOW:
503:doves
466:rocky
434:doves
387:Kenya
1206:7203
1175:NCBI
1162:IUCN
1149:ITIS
1128:5152
1110:GBIF
898:2016
818:ISBN
761:ISBN
717:2016
684:ISBN
662:ISBN
648:2021
631:2017
565:and
557:and
545:and
525:and
505:and
483:arid
477:and
458:and
448:and
436:and
397:and
283:cere
276:and
117:Aves
1084:EoL
1058:CMS
1045:CoL
983:ADW
635:doi
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