NEWS: The Eastern Imperial Eagle was recently sighted in the Mudumalai Tiger Reserve (Tamil Nadu) during the winter migratory season.
About Eastern Imperial Eagle
- Scientific Name: Aquila heliaca
- A large migratory bird of prey, native to southern Europe, Central Asia, and Siberia.
- Winter Migration: Northeast Africa, India, and Southeast China.
- Habitat: Forests, steppes, grasslands, agricultural lands, semideserts, and wetlands.
Key Features
- Similar to the Golden Eagle, with white shoulder patches and a golden crown.
- Diet: Small mammals, birds, reptiles, and carrion.
- Behaviour: Solitary, monogamous, and migrates up to 8,000 km.
- Major Threats: Habitat loss, hunting, poisoning, electrocution by power lines, and declining prey availability.
Conservation Status
- IUCN: Vulnerable
- CITES: Appendix I
- Wild Life (Protection) Act, 1972: Schedule I