Bateleur
Terathopius ecaudatus
Habitat
Ground
Diet
VertFishScav
Active Time
Diurnal
Size
2.2 kg
About This Species
Scan open savanna and thornbush country at first light or late afternoon, when this large eagle is most active, coursing low over the ground on stiff, outstretched wings with a characteristic rocking, side-to-side flight that makes identification straightforward even at distance. The extremely short tail gives the bird an almost tailless silhouette in flight, and the vivid red facial skin and bill contrast sharply with the black and white plumage — watch for it dropping abruptly to the ground to investigate carrion or flush small prey. Dry-season months offer the clearest sightings, as reduced vegetation exposes open hunting corridors and birds are drawn to waterholes and carcasses concentrated by drought; early morning perch surveys along acacia ridgelines are particularly productive.
Ethical Viewing Guidelines
- Maintain a minimum distance of 200 metres at all times, using quality optics or a long lens rather than approaching closer, and never attempt to access or linger near nest sites, which this species is particularly sensitive to.
- Across its range spanning sub-Saharan Africa, it receives legal protection under national wildlife legislation in countries including South Africa (National Environmental Management: Biodiversity Act), Kenya (Wildlife Conservation and Management Act), and Zimbabwe (Parks and Wild Life Act), as well as through CITES Appendix II listing governing any trade.
- Avoid repeated or prolonged observation of the same individual, refrain from using playback calls, and report any sightings to regional raptor monitoring programmes such as the African Raptor Observations database, which contributes meaningfully to conservation of this declining species.
Seasonal Activity
111,379 sightings · 2000–2026
Citizen science records via GBIF
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Accipitriformes
- Family
- Accipitridae
Traits
- Diet
- VertFishScav
- Foraging
- Ground
- Activity
- Diurnal
- Body mass
- 2.2 kg
Photo
Wikimedia Commons / Wikimedia Commons
CC-BY-SA-4.0
Occurrence data from GBIF.