Black-breasted+snake+eagle

Once seeing the black-breasted snake eagle there will be no mistaking it ever. These eagles are rather large birds weighing anywhere from 2.6 to 5.2 pounds, having a 24-26 inch length, with most having an amazing five foot wing span. The black-breasted snake eagle has a dark brown color covering its entire head, shoulders, wings, and tail, which is how it got its name. It has a contrasting white underneath. These birds have long thin gray legs and yellow eyes. Females generally larger than the males. Their young are generally a reddish brown in color with white speckled spots that disappear around three years of age.

The black-breasted snake eagle has also been called the black-chested snake eagle, the black harrier snake eagle, and is a part of the Accipitridae family, believing to be related to both the Beaudouin’s Snake eagle and the short-toed snake eagle, while closely resembling most other snake eagles of which there are more than six types.

These birds can be found throughout the southern most parts of Africa from northern most parts in Ethiopia to the southern most parts of South Africa. Their habitats ranges from countrysides, deserts, plains, woodlands, and pretty much anywhere that allows for perching and nesting, hunting, and a steady supply of food which consist of - no shocker here - snakes and lizards, other reptiles, frogs, rodents, amphibians, insects, small birds, bats, and fish. These birds can be found in groups of more than 200 during non-mating season. In Ethiopia and other northern most parts the mating season is from November –June, in the eastern part of Africa it’s in December-October, and the season is from June –January in the South Africa. The eagle will lay and incubate that one egg for about six weeks after which the young chick will leave the nest after three months.

Due to the large span in which these birds migrate and live across Africa an exact population number is not known but however they are listed as a least concern on the conservation status, which is always good news.