Birda Logo
Features
Birda+
About
Species Guide
Challenges
Shop
loading...

Legge's Hawk-Eagle

Nisaetus kelaarti

The Legge's hawk-eagle, a medium-sized eagle and a fairly large raptor, presents with brown upperparts and contrasting pale underparts. The undersides of its flight feathers and tail exhibit barring, while the breast and belly are heavily streaked. Its wings are broad with a curved trailing edge, and when in flight, they are held in a shallow V shape. Both sexes appear similar, though juveniles may display a whiter head.

Identification Tips

To identify Legge's hawk-eagle, look for unstreaked buff underwing coverts, which distinguish it from the similar mountain hawk-eagle. Adult males typically measure around 70 cm in length, while females are slightly larger at about 76 cm. The species is characterized by large talons indicative of its powerful predatory nature.

Habitat

This bird of prey is native to mountain woodlands, where it is often seen soaring or perched high in the trees.

Distribution

Legge's hawk-eagle breeds in the Indian subcontinent, with its range extending from southern India to Sri Lanka.

Behaviour

Despite its modest size, the Legge's hawk-eagle is a formidable predator, known to occasionally pursue prey as heavy or heavier than itself. It builds a stick nest in a tree and typically lays a single egg per clutch.

Breeding

The breeding habits of Legge's hawk-eagle involve constructing a stick nest within the forest canopy. The species usually lays a single egg, which both parents will then protect and incubate.

Diet and Feeding

Legge's hawk-eagle preys on small mammals, birds, and reptiles. It has been observed hunting prey of considerable size, such as the Indian peafowl, which can weigh between 2.8 to 4 kg.

Conservation status

The Legge's hawk-eagle is currently considered an overlooked threatened species. Conservation efforts are important to ensure the survival of this majestic bird of prey.

App logo
Birda is a birdwatching app and community aimed at curious people who want to deepen their connection with nature.

Legge's Hawk-Eagles on Birda

Sightings
A map showing the sighting location
Profile picture for Mahima Sukhdev
Mahima Sukhdev
22 Mar 2021 - 3:36pm
India

More Kites, Hawks, Eagles

A photo of a Shikra (Accipiter badius)

Shikra

Accipiter badius
Birda Logo

Your birdwatching journey like never before

Connect with nature in minutes
Take a walk, look out of the window and log the birds that you see. Feel good about those little connections to nature.
Discover the joy of birding
Find new birding spots, see more birds, share and celebrate with a like-minded community of nature lovers.
Play your part in saving nature
Logging your birding sightings and sessions turns into positive action for our planet. Every sighting counts.

Birda Blog

What Our Birders Say
Safira V
Birding and wellbeing app
Birda is an excellent platform to share your love of Birding and is a great tool of encouragement for a Birding Beginner like me. Birda has a very kind and supportive community of Birding enthusiasts. For me BIRDA is not only a BIRDING but also a WELLBEING App.
Amylia S
Best app for any birding person!
I love this app!! I am so addicted to it when I saw it had 3 star review I was so sad! The app is awesome!! The best app for any birding person! ❤️
Sacha0508
Simply fantastic
I love this app, it puts so much fun into recording the birds I’ve seen and heard while I’m out and about. The interface is user-friendly and suitable for all ages. It’s great to collect badges and to review my “lists”.
Talli A
My favourite app
As a young birdwatcher who was always keen to be apart of a community but never seemed to find one, my problem was solved downloading this!!! Everyone is so friendly and just as excited to see birds as me 😁
SuperOliviaGirl
Really great app
It’s easy to use and it’s fun to log the birds you notice on a walk or just in your garden. There’s a option to record the birds you see in a session which is really nice. Good excuse to stop for a while and just watch birds. I am also enjoying the information part where you can find out fact about birds from all over the world.
Paul F
Very good database
Highly recommend. It great that this app shows you male Vs female variations when posting. Very good database I'm really impressed.
Nedz53
Really useful
Downloaded to give it a try, everything worked perfectly, recorded my first bird watching walk. Very impressed. Have already recommended to friends!
Ellesse_W
Learning Birding with Birda
I’m relatively new to birding as a hobby, and Birda is a great way to keep track off all the species I see. I’m still working on my ID skills, but the app is great for figuring out potential species, and the online community is so friendly and helpful. Definitely recommend Birda to both early and serious birders! 🐦
Abi.M
Awesome App
I really enjoy using this app! It is such a friendly community of bird-lovers who are happy to help if I need ID advice. It’s been great motivation to get outdoors and go birding more! 10/10 😍😍
Leonie
We've been waiting for an App like this
Excellent! We've been waiting for an app like this! Thank you! It would be nice if you could assign additional birds to sessions later!
As featured in
Birda Logo
AboutPressAmbassadorsAffiliatesInfluencersCareersPrivacyTerms & Conditions
An app for birdwatchers
Connect with us
Copyright © 2024 Chirp Birding. All rights reserved.