Buteo brachypterus
Silhouette: Lauren Anderson · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5% in a week ~10%
The Madagascar buzzard (Buteo brachypterus) is a bird of prey which is endemic to Madagascar. It is a species from the widespread genus Buteo in the family Accipitridae. The Madagascar buzzard is a typical old-world buzzard showing quite a lot of variability in plumage and which is similar to the forest buzzard of Africa and the palearctic common buzzard. They have a dark grey head, a white patch on the breast, the brownish -white vent and thighs are spotted with brown. The tail is marked with broad brownish-black bars. The bill is black with a greyish blue cere, the eyes are yellow and the legs and feet are pale yellow.
Endemic to Madagascar where it is common, except for the deforested central plateau where it is less common, there is some indication that its population is increasing as the forest is fragmented. The Madagascar buzzard is adaptable as to its habitat and is found in a wide variety of habitats including forest, open woodland and regenerating, secondary forest. It can also be found on rocky hillsides up to 2300 metres above sea level. Although it is so adaptable it is still less common on the deforested central plateau... Wikipedia →
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Ankarafantsika National Park | 🇲🇬 Madagascar | |
| 2 | Mantadia National Park | 🇲🇬 Madagascar | |
| 3 | Ranomafana National Park | 🇲🇬 Madagascar |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Antananarivo | 🇲🇬 Madagascar |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Madagascar Buzzard sighting in Antananarivo on a given day, based on 8 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 61st most-seen of the 69 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, and over a week to about 10%, if each day is a fresh chance.
February
In that month about 20% of wildlife watchers report a Madagascar Buzzard in Antananarivo on a given day, against under 5% in March to January, the lowest months. That is one of Antananarivo's wettest months, with about 380 mm of rain against 45 mm in September.
Between 7 and 10 am
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Madagascar Buzzard sightings with a recorded time, and about 8 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Only Antananarivo, in our data
Antananarivo is the only city on Wallace's Line with enough records to rate Madagascar Buzzard sightings: under 5% of wildlife watchers there report one on a given day.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Madagascar Buzzard is recorded against all the birds logged in Antananarivo (8 verified sightings), calibrated against known sighting rates. Figures are rounded to the nearest 10% because citizen-science data supports honest approximations, not decimals, and months with records from fewer than five people show "—". How it works.
