Short-Toed Snake Eagle
Circaetus gallicus
Also known as: Short-Toed Eagle
Habitat
Ground
Diet
VertFishScav
Active Time
Diurnal
Size
1.7 kg
About This Species
Watch open, dry country, scrubland and rocky hillsides across southern Europe, the Middle East and parts of Asia and Africa, where it hunts snakes and lizards by hovering conspicuously high over open ground before dropping onto prey. Spring and summer, when adults are provisioning a single large stick nest in a tree, offer the best combination of hovering hunting behaviour and reliable daytime activity.
Ethical Viewing Guidelines
- Keep a generous distance from nest trees, ideally observing from several hundred metres with a scope, since raptors are sensitive to disturbance near the nest and may desert it if repeatedly approached; most range countries give birds of prey specific legal protection, though the exact rules and penalties differ by country.
- Avoid lingering near a nest site for long periods, and never approach on foot once a nest has been located.
LCAvesAccipitriformesAccipitridae
Seasonal Activity
447,189 sightings · 2000–2026
Citizen science records via GBIF
All monthsThis month
Classification
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Chordata
- Class
- Aves
- Order
- Accipitriformes
- Family
- Accipitridae
Traits
- Diet
- VertFishScav
- Foraging
- Ground
- Activity
- Diurnal
- Body mass
- 1.7 kg
Photo
(c) Vijay Vanaparthy, some rights reserved (CC BY), uploaded by Vijay Vanaparthy
CC-BY-4.0
Occurrence data from GBIF.