Alternative names: Grey-headed Fishing Eagle, Greater Fishing Eagle
- Ichthyophaga ichthyaetus
Haliaeetus ichthyaetus
Identification
61–75 cm (24-29½ in)
- Brownish -grey overall plumage
- Smallish grey head
- White belly
- Grey bill
- Mainly white tail with broad black subterminal band
Distribution
Southern Asia: found in India south of the Himalayas, and Sri Lanka, and from Burma east to northern Vietnam and south through the Malay Peninsula. Also occurs in the Philippines, Sumatra, Java, Borneo and Sulawesi.
Rare in western Java and there are no recent records from the east.
Taxonomy
This is a monotypic species[1].
It was formerly placed in the genus Haliaeetus.
Habitat
Slow running forested rivers and streams in lowlands, lakes, lagoons, wooded swamps and rocky mountains. Also occasionally seen along coasts and estuaries.
Behaviour
Diet
Their diet consists largely of fish, with the addition of some small birds and mammals such as squirrels.
They have been observed walking river edges in the search of fish.
Movements
A resident species.
Gallery
Click on photo for larger image
Photo by firecrest15
Uda-Walawe National Park, Sri Lanka, March 2010
References
- Clements, J. F., P. C. Rasmussen, T. S. Schulenberg, M. J. Iliff, T. A. Fredericks, J. A. Gerbracht, D. Lepage, A. Spencer, S. M. Billerman, B. L. Sullivan, and C. L. Wood. 2023. The eBird/Clements checklist of Birds of the World: v2023. Downloaded from https://www.birds.cornell.edu/clementschecklist/download/
- Handbook of the Birds of the World Alive (retrieved October 2015)
- BF Member observations
Recommended Citation
- BirdForum Opus contributors. (2024) Grey-headed Fish Eagle. In: BirdForum, the forum for wild birds and birding. Retrieved 19 April 2024 from https://www.birdforum.net/opus/Grey-headed_Fish_Eagle
External Links
GSearch checked for 2020 platform.1
