MyKrugerHoliday
Photo: Derek Keats from Johannesburg, South Africa · CC BY 2.0 · source ↗
Bateleur
Berghaan · Terathopius ecaudatus
A short-tailed eagle with a black body, chestnut back and bright red face and legs. Its name is French for 'tightrope walker' because it rocks and tilts side to side as it glides on long wings. It can fly for hours barely flapping, scanning huge stretches of bush for carrion, snakes and small animals.
Log your Bateleur sighting — free →How to identify it
In flight, a black eagle with such a tiny tail that its feet stick out past it, gliding on tilting, upswept wings.
Listen for its call
Usually silent, but can give a surprisingly loud bark and a harsh scream.
Where to see it in Kruger
Soars over open savanna and bushveld park-wide, very often the first big raptor you'll see flying low overhead.
Did you know
It can cover hundreds of kilometres in a single day, gliding for hours without flapping its wings.
See it? Log it — free.
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