Description
It is 59–71 cm (23–28 in) in length and has a wingspan of 157–179 cm (5.15–5.87 ft) and a typical body mass of 1.6–2.5 kg (3.5–5.5 lb), with an occasional big female weighing up to 3.2 kg (7.1 lb). This medium-sized eagle is very similar in general appearance to its closest relative the Lesser Spotted Eagle (A. pomarina), which shares part of its range. Head and wing coverts are very dark brown and contrast with the generally medium brown plumage; the Lesser Spotted Eagle has a paler head and wing coverts. The head is small for an eagle. The similarities of the Greater Spotted to the Lesser Spotted often results in misidentification as being that species. This is further complicated by occasional hybrids between the two species.
There is often a less obvious white patch on the upperwings, but a light crescent on the primary remiges is a good field mark. The white V mark on the rump is less clear-cut in adults than in the Lesser Spotted Eagle. The juvenile has white spots all over its wings and lacks a lighter nape patch.
The call is a dog-like yip.
In winter, it occurs in the range of the Indian Spotted Eagle (A. hastata). From this recently-validated relative, it can be distinguished by the darker color and lighter eye (not darker than the body plumage at distance, lighter at close range), and in juveniles, the strong spotting. It is also a bit larger – though this cannot be reliably estimated in the field – and in the winter quarters prefers wetland habitat.
-
Underside of adult wintering at Bharatpur (Rajasthan, India)
-
Upperside of adult wintering in Bharatpur (Rajasthan, India)
Note light wing stripes
Read more about this topic: Greater Spotted Eagle
Famous quotes containing the word description:
“It [Egypt] has more wonders in it than any other country in the world and provides more works that defy description than any other place.”
—Herodotus (c. 484–424 B.C.)
“God damnit, why must all those journalists be such sticklers for detail? Why, they’d hold you to an accurate description of the first time you ever made love, expecting you to remember the color of the room and the shape of the windows.”
—Lyndon Baines Johnson (1908–1973)
“The Sage of Toronto ... spent several decades marveling at the numerous freedoms created by a “global village” instantly and effortlessly accessible to all. Villages, unlike towns, have always been ruled by conformism, isolation, petty surveillance, boredom and repetitive malicious gossip about the same families. Which is a precise enough description of the global spectacle’s present vulgarity.”
—Guy Debord (b. 1931)