28 January 2024: Day 10, Chobe Nationwide Park by means of boat, Botswana — Street Student Southern Africa Birding Safari. Click on right here to peer (usually) the place I’m lately.
In Africa there’s a fish consuming eagle that has many traits in commonplace our personal bald eagle. It eats fish, builds a stick nest close to water, has a white head and tail, and perches and calls in pairs.
Previous to 2018 it used to be in the similar genus as North The usa’s bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) however DNA proof moved the African fish eagle to Icthyophaga vocifer, the “fish-eater with loud voice.” It’s intently associated with the Madagascar fish eagle (I. vociferoides).
Nevertheless it behaves so much like a bald eagle. This description of the African fish eagle might be written concerning the bald eagle, together with the dependancy of stealing fish from ospreys.
… Pink-knobbed Coot are necessary prey along with fish. Hunts basically from a perch by means of swooping right down to pluck prey from close to the water floor, rowing greater prey to shore. Infrequently hunts when hovering, however incessantly pursues and pirates different piscivorous [fish-eating] birds. Perches for 85–95% of day in productive tropical habitat. Typically solitary, however greater than 100 might accumulate at concentrations of stranded fish.
If you happen to watch bald eagles, you’ll acknowledge the African fish eagle’s searching method.
African fish eagles are louder than bald eagles; they sound virtually like gulls. Simply as for bald eagles the feminine is bigger — she’s at the left.
Right here’s a couple of bald eagles calling for comparability. Their voices are a lot softer.
It’s no surprise that those two have been in the similar genus for see you later.
(credit are within the captions)