Hieraaetus morphnoides
Silhouette: Andy Wilson · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5%
The little eagle (Hieraaetus morphnoides) is a very small eagle endemic to Australia. John Gould described the little eagle in 1841. The distinctive pygmy eagle has long been considered a subspecies, but a 2009 genetic study shows it to be distinctive genetically and warrants species status. It is a near relative of both the Palearctic booted eagle and the massive but now extinct Haast's eagle of New Zealand.
The little eagle is a medium-sized bird of prey, measuring 45–55 cm (17–21.5 inches) in length and weighing 815 g (1.8 lb), roughly the size of a peregrine falcon. It has fully feathered legs and a square-cut, barred tail. Wingspan is about 120 cm with males having longer wings in proportion to their bodies, but being nearly half the weight of females. It is a powerful bird and during flight has strong wing beats, glides on flat wings and soars on slightly raised or flat wings.
The little eagle occurs in light and dark colour forms and generally these colours change with age. The most common is the light form which is dark brown occurring on the back and wings with black streaks on the head and neck, and a sandy to pale under body. The dark form... Wikipedia →
Call0:26
Australia · 2021
© Iain Woxvold · XC621121 · CC BY-NC-SA 4.0
Recording0:10
Australia · 2025
© Thomas Nataprawira · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording0:23
Australia · 2023
© Josh Magro · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Hattah-Kulkyne National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 2 | Flinders Ranges National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 3 | Uluru-Kata Tjuta National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 4 | Cape Range | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 5 | Ningaloo Marine Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 6 | Grampians National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 7 | Rottnest Island | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 8 | Kakadu National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia | |
| 9 | Royal National Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Featherdale Sydney Wildlife Park | 🇦🇺 Australia |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Little Eagle sighting in Brisbane on a given day, based on 24 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 219th most-seen of the 237 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, if each day is a fresh chance.
Any time of year
In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Little Eagle in Brisbane on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 10 am and 1 pm
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Little Eagle sightings with a recorded time, and about 9 in 10 of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is a daytime animal.
Among the best
Of the 4 cities where we can rate Little Eagle sightings, Brisbane ranks 3rd at under 5%, level with the leaders once rounded. The best odds are in Perth (Australia, under 5%) and Melbourne (Australia, under 5%).
Same family: Accipitridae
The closest relatives of the Little Eagle that you can see in Brisbane (family Accipitridae, Hawks, Eagles, and Kites) are White-Bellied Sea-Eagle (about 10%) and Black-shouldered Kite (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Little Eagle is recorded against all the birds logged in Brisbane (24 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.
