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Birds

Birds

Common name Booted eagle
Scientific name Aquila pennata
Type Forest birds
Status Summer

Medium-sized raptor bird (about 51 cm or 20 in) with long, thin wings (wingspan approx 135 cm or 4.5 ft) that facilitate a sleek and agile flight. Booted eagles dress in two different ways (phases). The most frequent is the clear phase. The back is greyish brown while the belly, throat and front half of the wings are white or light cream. The other half of the wings is black. The dark form or phase substitutes the white colour for a dark brown, the more brown tones in the plumage generally dominating. When perched it is characterized by having completely feathered tarsi.

Habitats

Woodland environment

Where it lives

Forest raptor also present in cleared areas, mosaic landscapes, countryside, pastures, scrub areas, crops and even peri-urban areas. In the woods it usually has its breeding zone and the rest of the areas make up its hunting territories. It is present in holm and cork oak woods, pine woods, forest crops and riversides, from sea level up to 1600 meters high.

How it lives

Migratory species present in Malaga, especially during the summer season. In the province there are also individuals in passage and some wintering ones. They build a nest in a tree at a height of between 5 and 15 meters (16 to 49 ft) and are loyal to their breeding places year after year. The laying (usually two eggs) is in mid-April and early May. These raptors feed mostly on medium-sized birds (pigeons, partridges, blackbirds, thrushes, jays...), rabbits, other small mammals, reptiles and insects

Where it can be seen in Malaga

Present in the forest stages of the Great Path. Easy to observe, for example, in stages 1, 5, 6, 7, 8, 12, 16, 20, 22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 31, 32, 33 and 34.

Curious facts

Hunters can also be hunted. Eagle-owls are predators of booted eagle chicks and juveniles in those areas where there are plenty of them.

Routes where it can be observed
Present
JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec
Wintering Summer Resident Migration
Audios