Crested Hawk-Eagle

Crested Hawk-Eagle

Nisaetus cirrhatus

Silhouette: Sheatherius · PhyloPic

LCLeast ConcernNTVUENCR
Daily sighting probability <5% · Rare
at Pune

In 3 days <5%

5 Verified sightings at Pune
7,750 In all 34 parks From 2019 to 2026
October Best month
🌅 Crepuscular When it's spotted

About the Crested Hawk-Eagle

The changeable hawk-eagle (Nisaetus cirrhatus) or crested hawk-eagle is a large bird of prey species of the family Accipitridae. More informal or antiquated English common names include the marsh hawk-eagle or Indian crested hawk-eagle. It is a member of the subfamily Aquilinae, with signature feathers, absent in tropical raptors from outside this subfamily, covering the tarsus. It was formerly placed in the genus Spizaetus, but studies pointed to the group being paraphyletic resulting in the Old World members being placed in Nisaetus and separated from the New World species. It is a typical "hawk-eagle" in that it is an agile forest-dwelling predator and like many such eagles readily varies its prey selection between birds, mammals or reptiles as well as other vertebrates. Among the members of its genus, the changeable hawk-eagle stands out as the most widely distributed, adaptable and abundant species. Individuals show a wide range of variation in plumage from pale to dark, varying with moult and age giving rise to the name "changeable".

The changeable hawk-eagle was formally described in 1788 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded... Wikipedia →

Sounds

Call1:14

Malaysia · 2026

© Ding Li Yong · XC1175523 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Dawn song0:19

Malaysia · 2024

© Lim Ying Hien · XC937683 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Song0:13

Nepal · 2023

© Marc Anderson · XC809891 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0

Global Distribution

Parks Where Found

# Park Country Daily sighting probability
1 Udawalawe National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
~60%
2 Yala National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
~50%
3 Wilpattu National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
~50%
4 Jim Corbett National Park 🇮🇳 India
~40%
5 Royal Bardia National Park 🇳🇵 Nepal
~40%
6 Kaziranga National Park 🇮🇳 India
~30%
7 Manas National Park 🇮🇳 India
~30%
8 Bandhavgarh National Park 🇮🇳 India
~30%
9 Gir National Park 🇮🇳 India
~20%
10 Sinharaja Forest Reserve 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
~20%
11 Nagarhole National Park 🇮🇳 India
~20%
12 Minneriya National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
~20%
13 Satpura National Park 🇮🇳 India
~20%
14 Bandipur National Park 🇮🇳 India
~20%
15 Chitwan National Park 🇳🇵 Nepal
~20%
16 Sundarbans National Park 🇮🇳 India
~10%
17 Mudumalai National Park 🇮🇳 India
~10%
18 Kanha National Park 🇮🇳 India
~10%
19 Kinabatangan Wildlife Sanctuary 🇲🇾 Malaysia
~10%
20 Bali Barat National Park 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~10%
21 Sepilok 🇲🇾 Malaysia
~10%
22 Taman Negara National Park 🇲🇾 Malaysia
~10%
23 Periyar National Park 🇮🇳 India
~10%
24 Gunung Leuser National Park 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~10%
25 Danum Valley Conservation Area 🇲🇾 Malaysia
~10%
26 Way Kambas National Park 🇮🇩 Indonesia
~10%
27 Horton Plains National Park 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
<5%
28 Royal Manas National Park 🇧🇹 Bhutan
<5%
29 Eravikulam National Park 🇮🇳 India
<5%
30 Kerinci Seblat National Park 🇮🇩 Indonesia
<5%
31 Cat Tien National Park 🇻🇳 Vietnam
<5%
32 Khao Sok National Park 🇹🇭 Thailand
<5%
33 Kinabalu Park 🇲🇾 Malaysia
<5%
34 Ranthambore National Park 🇮🇳 India
<5%

Cities Where Found

# City Country Daily sighting probability
1 Singapore 🇸🇬 Singapore
~20%
2 Thrissur 🇮🇳 India
~10%
3 Kuala Lumpur 🇲🇾 Malaysia
~10%
4 Tamluk 🇮🇳 India
~10%
5 Johor Bahru 🇲🇾 Malaysia
~10%
6 Kochi 🇮🇳 India
<5%
7 Dehradun 🇮🇳 India
<5%
8 Kozhikode 🇮🇳 India
<5%
9 Ponnani 🇮🇳 India
<5%
10 Colombo [Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte] 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka
<5%

Zoos & Centres Where Found

# Zoo / Centre Country
1 Ninoy Aquino Parks & Wildlife Center 🇵🇭 Philippines In captivity
2 Gembira Loka Zoo 🇮🇩 Indonesia In captivity
3 Surabaya Zoo 🇮🇩 Indonesia In captivity
4 Bandung Zoo 🇮🇩 Indonesia In captivity
5 Kuala Lumpur Bird Park 🇲🇾 Malaysia In captivity
6 Bali Bird Park 🇮🇩 Indonesia In captivity
7 Negros Forests and Ecological Foundation Biodiversity Conservation Center 🇵🇭 Philippines In captivity

Before you go

What are the chances of seeing a Crested Hawk-Eagle in Pune?

Rare

Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Crested Hawk-Eagle sighting in Pune on a given day, based on 5 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data. It is the 232nd most-seen of the 236 birds we can rate there. Over three days the chance rises to under 5%, if each day is a fresh chance.

When is the best time to see a Crested Hawk-Eagle in Pune?

Any time of year

In every month with enough records, under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Crested Hawk-Eagle in Pune on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.

What time of day is best to see a Crested Hawk-Eagle?

Between 4 and 7 am

Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Crested Hawk-Eagle sightings with a recorded time, and about half of them come between 6 am and 6 pm: it is most active around dawn and dusk.

Is Pune the best place to see a Crested Hawk-Eagle?

13th of 13

Of the 13 cities where we can rate Crested Hawk-Eagle sightings, Pune ranks 13th at under 5%. The best odds are in Singapore (Singapore, about 20%), Thrissur (India, about 10%) and Kuala Lumpur (Malaysia, about 10%).

Which relatives of the Crested Hawk-Eagle live in Pune?

Same family: Accipitridae

The closest relatives of the Crested Hawk-Eagle that you can see in Pune (family Accipitridae, Hawks, Eagles, and Kites) are Black Kite (about 80%) and Booted Eagle (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.

Where does the Crested Hawk-Eagle sighting chance come from?

GBIF citizen-science records

It is estimated from how often the Crested Hawk-Eagle is recorded against all the birds logged in Pune (5 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.

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