| Kingdom | Phylum | Class | Order | Family |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| ANIMALIA | CHORDATA | AVES | FALCONIFORMES | ACCIPITRIDAE |
| Scientific Name: | Polemaetus bellicosus | ||||||
| Species Authority: | (Daudin, 1800) | ||||||
Common Name/s:
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| Red List Category & Criteria: | Near Threatened ver 3.1 | ||||||
| Year Published: | 2009 | ||||||
| Assessor/s: | BirdLife International | ||||||
| Reviewer/s: | Symes, A., Butchart, S., Bird, J. | ||||||
| Contributor/s: | Daniel, O., Tyler, S., Ajama, A., Brown, C., Hall, P., Baker, N., Brewster, C. | ||||||
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Justification: This species has been uplisted to Near Threatened because it is suspected to have undergone moderately rapid declines during the past three generations (56 years) owing to habitat loss and incidental poisoning and pollution, and is consequently believed to approach the threshold for classification as Vulnerable. |
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| History: |
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| Range Description: | Polemaetus bellicosus has an extensive range across much of sub-Saharan Africa, from Senegal and the Gambia east to Ethiopia and north-west Somalia and south to Namibia, Botswana and South Africa. It is generally scarce to uncommon or rare, but is reasonably common in some areas1. It is suspected to have undergone declines in much of its range, including Namibia3 and Nigeria2. |
| Countries: |
Native:
Angola; Benin; Botswana; Burkina Faso; Burundi; Cameroon; Central African Republic; Chad; Congo, The Democratic Republic of the; Côte d'Ivoire; Eritrea; Ethiopia; Gambia; Ghana; Guinea; Guinea-Bissau; Kenya; Malawi; Mali; Mauritania; Mozambique; Namibia; Niger; Nigeria; Rwanda; Senegal; Sierra Leone; Somalia; South Africa; Sudan; Swaziland; Tanzania, United Republic of; Togo; Uganda; Zambia; Zimbabwe
Vagrant:
Liberia
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| Range Map: | Click here to open the map viewer and explore range. |
| Population: | Ferguson-Lees and Christie (2001). |
| Population Trend: |
Decreasing
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| Habitat and Ecology: | It inhabits open woodland, wooded savanna, bushy grassland, thornbush and, in southern Africa, more open country and even subdesert, from sea level to 3,000 m but mainly below 1,500 m1. The main prey is sizeable mammals, birds and reptiles1. |
| Systems: | Terrestrial; Freshwater |
| Major Threat(s): | The species suffers from direct persecution (shooting and trapping) by farmers, indirect poisoning (these two threats by far the most important causes of losses), drowning in sheer-walled reservoirs, electrocution on power poles, and habitat alteration and degradation4. Poisoning is largely carried out by a few large-scale commercial farmers, but is also a problem in tribal small-stock farming communities. Deforestation may be having less of an impact on this species than on other large eagles as it can utilise man-made structures for nesting. Reduction in natural prey may lead to an increase in predation on domestic animals which may in turn lead to increased persecution by farmers. In some areas birds may be taken for use in traditional medicine. |
| Conservation Actions: |
Conservation Actions Underway A system to compensate farmers for stock losses has been initiated in South Africa. Conservation Actions Proposed Introduce programmes combining awareness campaigns and compensation to farmers for stock losses across the species's range. Install anti-electrocution devices on electricity pylons. |
| Citation: | BirdLife International 2009. Polemaetus bellicosus. In: IUCN 2011. IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2011.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 24 May 2012. |
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