Today, let's talk about eagles. There are many kinds of eagles, more than 190 species worldwide. More than 20 species are common in Taiwan, covering all eagle species found in China. They are distributed in the low- to mid-altitude mountains, swamps, coastlines, and estuaries of Taiwan, feeding on animals and belonging to the raptor family. Today, we'll introduce the 10 most common eagle species living in my country. Do you know what they are? Let's take a look!
1. Goshawk . A medium-sized bird of prey. It can reach 60 cm in length and has a wingspan of about 1.3 meters. The crown, nape, and sides of the head are dark brown, with white tips on the nape feathers; the supercilium is white with black markings; the back is brownish-black; the lower chest is densely covered with alternating gray-brown and white horizontal stripes; the tail is gray-brown with four broad black horizontal bars, and is square-shaped. In flight, the wings are broad, with white underwings but densely covered with dark brown horizontal bands. Females are significantly larger than males. Carnivorous, it primarily feeds on forest rodents, hares, pheasants, hazel grouse, pigeons, and other small birds. It has keen eyesight and is an excellent flier. It is active during the day. It is very alert and adept at concealment.
2. Sparrowhawk . A small bird of prey, 30-41 cm in length. Females are slightly larger than males, with broad, rounded wings and a longer tail. The male's upperparts are dark gray, while the female's are grayish-brown, with a few white markings on the back of the head. The underparts are white or pale grayish-white; the male has fine, dense reddish-brown horizontal bars, while the female has brown horizontal bars. The tail has 4-5 dark brown horizontal bars. In flight, the trailing edge of the wing is slightly prominent, and the underwing feathers have several dark brown horizontal bands. It feeds on small passerine birds, insects, and rodents, and also preys on columbiformes and small galliformes such as hazel grouse. Sometimes it also preys on rabbits, snakes, and insect larvae.
3. Red-bellied Hawk . A small bird of prey with long, pointed wings. Because of its pigeon-like appearance, it is also called the Pigeon Hawk. It measures 27-36 cm in length and weighs 108-132 grams. Its head and back are bluish-grey, while its wings and tail feathers are grayish-brown. It primarily feeds on frogs, lizards, and other animal matter, but also eats small birds, rodents, and insects. It mainly hunts on the ground, often perching on treetops or other high places, and swoops down to catch its prey.
4. Crested Goshawk . A medium-sized bird of prey, measuring 41-49 cm in length. The forehead and nape are mouse-grey with a prominent crest of the same color as the head; the rest of the upperparts are brown, and the tail has four broad, dark horizontal bars. The throat is white with a prominent black central stripe; the breast is brownish-brown with white longitudinal stripes; the rest of the underparts are white with narrow brownish-brown horizontal bars; the undertail coverts are white; in flight, the wings are short and rounded with a prominent trailing edge, and the underwing feathers have several broad black horizontal bands. It is a stealthy and alert bird, feeding on frogs, lizards, rodents, insects, and other animal matter, but also eats birds and small mammals.
5. Brown-eared Hawk . Much smaller than the Goshawk, it is a small bird of prey, measuring 31-44 cm in length and weighing 217-325 grams. The upperparts are grey, with reddish-brown bars on the underparts. The outer vane of the sixth primary flight feather is unnotched, and the four pairs of tail feathers on the outermost sides have five dark brown bars. The lores have short white feathers. The ear coverts are pale greyish-brown. The bill is dark brown. The legs are brownish-yellow. With keen eyesight, once it spots prey in the air or on the ground, it swoops down with lightning speed, grabs the prey with its sharp talons, and takes flight again to a secluded spot to tear it apart. Its diet consists of rodents, small birds, and orthopteran insects.
6. Eurasian Sparrowhawk . A small bird of prey, 28-38 cm in length. The male has a blackish-grey upperparts, a white throat with a broad, prominent black central stripe, and a white or greyish-white underparts with brown or reddish-brown spots. The tail has four dark horizontal bars. The female is larger, with a dark brown upperparts and a white underparts with dark brown or reddish-brown horizontal bars. Similar species of sparrowhawks are larger and lack the blackish-brown central stripe on their throats; the Red-bellied Hawk has black wingtips and also lacks the black central stripe on its throat. They feed on various small birds, as well as lizards, locusts, grasshoppers, beetles, and other insects and small rodents. They sometimes even prey on quails and small to medium-sized birds such as pigeons and doves.
7. White-tailed Eagle . A large bird of prey, measuring 84-91 cm in length. Adults are mostly dark brown; the feathers on the nape and chest are lanceolate and relatively long; the head and neck feathers are paler, sandy brown or pale yellowish-brown; the bill and legs are yellow, and the tail feathers are wedge-shaped and pure white. Active during the day, the calls of males and females are distinctly different. They often fly alone or in pairs over large lakes and seas, and in winter, small flocks of 3-5 individuals sometimes soar high in the sky. They primarily feed on fish, often flying low over water, and also consume wild ducks, geese, swans, pheasants, rodents, wild rabbits, roe deer, and sometimes even animal carcasses.
8. Forest Eagle . A medium-sized bird of prey, measuring 67-81 cm in length, with a wingspan of 164-178 cm, and weighing 1000-1600 grams. It is entirely dark brown, with white spots below and on the lores; the head, wings, and tail are darker; the tail is relatively long, with pale brown uppertail coverts with white horizontal bars; the tail feathers have indistinct grayish-brown horizontal bars. It preys on rodents, snakes, lizards, frogs, pheasants, and small birds, and also preys on the eggs and chicks of other birds. It is a rare resident bird in Taiwan, China.
9. Black Eagle . A species of eagle in the family Accipitridae, order Accipitriformes. The male is 63 cm in length, and the female about 70 cm. Its plumage is dark chestnut brown with a metallic sheen on the back. It inhabits woodlands near grasslands and wetlands, hunting in flight or from the ground, preying on hyraxes, guinea fowl, monkeys, hares, and other animals. In China, it lives in Northeast, North, East, Central and South China, and Xinjiang.
10. Black-necked Eagle . Also known as the Chinese Black Eagle or Small Black-necked Eagle, it is a Class II protected animal in China. The black-necked eagle is 61-74 cm long and weighs 1310-2100 grams. Its body is dark brown, with a slight purplish sheen on its back. The chin, throat, and chest are blackish-brown, while the rest of its underparts are lighter in color. It inhabits woodlands near grasslands and wetlands, hunting in flight or on the ground. It feeds on fish, frogs, rodents, and also beetles and locusts. It is found in Northeast, North, East, Central and South China, and Xinjiang.
