Stats

Lifespan

12-24 yrs

Size

Large

Diet

Carnivore

Activity

Diurnal

Social

Pair

Biome

Freshwater wetland

Range

Sub-Saharan Africa

Movement

Flight

Breeding

Egg-laying

Defense

Speed

Status

Uncommon

About

The African Fish Eagle is a large bird of prey found throughout sub-Saharan Africa wherever large bodies of open water with an abundant food supply occur. This eagle has long legs, sharp talons, and a specialized beak that is well-suited to catching and consuming fish.

Life cycle

1. 1.
   egg

   One or two eggs are incubated on a high stick nest or cliff ledge, guarded closely by the pair.
2. 2.
   hatchling

   A downy hatchling is fed torn meat by its parents and grows quickly in a high nest.
3. 3.
   juvenile

   A feathered juvenile fledges from the nest, learning to soar and to make its first kills.
4. 4.
   adult

   Fully grown, hunting on its own with adult plumage.

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Taxonomy

Kingdom

Animalia

Phylum

Chordata

Class

Aves

Order

Accipitriformes

Family

Accipitridae

Genus

Icthyophaga

Species

Icthyophaga vocifer