Wallace’s hawk-eagle  (Spizaetus nanus)

Description

Wallace’s hawk-eagle is a small, boldly-patterned bird of prey. The head is orangey-brown, with blackish streaks, and a dark crest with white tips sticks up from the back of the head. The upperparts are very dark brown, and the underparts are buffish-white with narrow, dark barring (2) (3). There are two subspecies; unlike Spizaetus nanus nanus, Spizaetus nanus stresemanni juveniles have white heads and underparts (2). It is frequently confused with Blyth’s hawk-eagle, (S. alboniger), making this species’ status hard to determine (1).

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