African Fish Eagle - Haliaeetus vocifer

An icon of the African skies around wetlands, rivers and estuaries. This large eagle closely resembles the Bald Eagle of North America. These beautiful eagles pair for life

It preys on fish predominantly, as it swoops down and grabs a fish from the water’s surface with its sharp talons. It also frequently catches and eats waterfowl and other small reptiles and mammals. The iconic call of this African Fish Eagle can be heard throughout the day, echoing through the land reminding you of where you are.

This is one of the most successful of all eagles, its hunting technique is highly successful allowing this eagle to hunt for only short periods of the day and spend the rest of the day protecting its territory from other Fish Eagles.

They are currently listed as least concern by the IUCN and have in many ways benefitted from some of man’s development of water bodies, such as dams. But with increasing populations, this leads to degraded water quality and suitable shoreline habitat. The use of non-biodegradable nylon fishing nets is also causing a rise for concern as many eagles are caught in the deadly debris.