Madagascar harrier-hawk

Madagascar harrier-hawk
Scientific classification
Kingdom Information
Domain	Eukaryota
Kingdom	Animalia
Subkingdom	Bilateria
Branch	Deuterostomia
Phylum Information
Phylum	Chordata
Sub-phylum	Vertebrata
Infraphylum	Gnathostomata
Class Information
Superclass	Tetrapoda
Class	Aves
Sub-class	Neornithes
Infra-class	Neoaves
Order Information
Order	Accipitriformes
Sub-order	Accipitres
Family Information
Superfamily	Accipitroidea
Family	Accipitridae
Sub-family	Polyboroidinae
Genus Information
Genus	Polyboroides
Species Information
Species	P. radiatus
Population statistics
Population	6,700 (2016 est.)
Conservation status	Least concern

The Madagascar harrier-hawk or Madagascar gymnogene (Polyboroides radiatus) is a species of bird of prey of the family Accipitridae, and found throughout much of the island of Madagascar off the eastern coast of Africa.

Description

The Madagascar harrier-hawk is medium-sized, with a length of 20 to 26.8 inches, a wingspan span of 46.5 to 59.6 inches, and weighs 17.6 to 33.5 ounces. Females are slightly larger than males. The plumage overall is light gray to light gray-blue; similar to the African harrier-hawk but slightly lighter in color. The large, broad wings have black spots on the upper side and the leading half of both primaries and secondaries is black. The black tail bears a broad white band in the middle and a narrow white end band. The abdomen, flanks, lower tail-coverts, the leg-feathers as well as the under-wing-covers are finely gray and white banded. The naked face with is yellow-orange with a hint of pink, the beak is slate-gray. An erectile hood is at the back of the head, which makes the relatively small head appear larger. The long, yellow legs are very flexible, and the intertarsal joint can be moved 70° to the rear and 30° to the side. Young birds are variable light brown to dark brown and have a gray face, gaining their adult plumage in about three years.

The call is a shrill "pee-ee-ee-ee" or "weeee-eer", lasting about one to two seconds.

Range and habitat

The bird is found on Madagascar, with a range consisting of a very wide coastal strip around the entire island; it is not found within the central highlands. The main habitat is dense forest, banana plantations and the margins of wetlands and rice fields.

Diet

The Madagascar harrier-hawk diet is exceptionally variable, for example of insects, lizards, snakes, geckos, chameleons, frogs, as well as bird eggs, nestlings, adult birds, domestic poultry, and occasionally the fruits of the oil palm. Furthermore, small mammals are captured, including mice, rats, hedgehog trebles, red fruit bats and lemurs. The search for food takes place predominantly in a characteristic way: The birds examines the nest or cavities within trees of rocky craigs; the ambidextrous legs are then used - like hands - to reach in, grab the prey animal, and pull it out.

Reproduction

The breeding season is mainly in the month of October. A relatively flat, bowl-shaped nest is made from branches and leaves between 30 and 70 feet above the ground. Two or more eggs are laid, colored white with brownish spots. Incubation is about 39 days, with the female doing the incubation more than half the time. Initially, only the male provides food while the female feeds the prey to the chick, reduced to one due to an older, stronger sibling killing the others. The young bird leaves the nest for the first time after about 50 days, but is still dependent on the parents for several months.