Birds · Accipitriformes · Accipitridae

Booted Eagle

Hieraaetus pennatus

Least Concern

The species is abundant and widely distributed; it faces no significant short-term risk. See full glossary

The booted eagle is a small raptor, buzzard-sized, with two very different colour morphs: a pale one, with an almost white body, and a dark one, uniformly brown. Both occur in the same populations. It breeds in Mediterranean woodland and hunts lizards, birds and small mammals in open country with stoops from a great height. Spain holds the largest breeding population in Europe.

Weight

709 g – 975 g

Size

42 cm – 51 cm

Lifespan

15 years

Diet

Carnivore

Feeds mainly on other animals.

Activity

Diurnal

Active mainly during the day.

Social structure

In pairs

Usually lives in pairs, sometimes for life.

Sighting difficulty

Easy

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Fun facts

GeneralIt comes in two morphs, pale and dark, within the same population.
Its diagnostic feature is the landing lights: two clean white patches on the shoulders, visible as it flies towards you, that no other European raptor has.
Two radically different colour morphs, pale and dark, live side by side in the same population, unrelated to sex or age, and a mixed pair can raise chicks of both types.
It migrates to sub-Saharan Africa, though a growing share of the Spanish population now winters in the peninsula, a change linked to the warming climate.

Life cycle & biology

Skeleton type: Vertebrate - internal bony skeleton (bird)
Habitat & environment: Mediterranean woodland, dehesa, pine woods and riverside forest with open country around
Sexual maturity: 3 years
Gestation / incubation: 36 days of incubation
Litter / clutch size: 2 eggs

Sources consulted: https://es.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hieraaetus_pennatus