Aquila verreauxii
Silhouette: Shyamal · PhyloPic
In 3 days <5%
Verreaux's eagle (Aquila verreauxii) is a large, mostly African, bird of prey. It is also called the black eagle, especially in southern Africa, not to be confused with the black eagle (Ictinaetus malayensis) of south and southeast Asia. The Verreaux's eagle lives in hilly and mountainous regions of southern and eastern Africa (extending marginally into Chad, Mali and Niger), and very locally in the Middle East.
Verreaux's eagle is one of the most specialized species of accipitrid in the world, with its distribution and life history revolving around its favorite prey species, the rock hyraxes. When hyrax populations decline, the species have been shown to survive with mixed success on other prey, such as small antelopes, gamebirds, hares, monkeys and other assorted vertebrates. Despite a high degree of specialization, Verreaux's eagle has, from a conservation standpoint, been faring relatively well in historic times. One population of this species, in the Matobo Hills of Zimbabwe, is arguably the best studied eagle population in the world, having been subject to continuous detailed study since the late 1950s. Like all eagles, this species belongs to the taxonomic order Accipitriformes (formerly included in Falconiformes) and the family Accipitridae, which may be referred to colloquially as accipitrids or raptors. Wikipedia →
Call1:00
South Africa · 2017
© Peter Boesman · XC392307 · CC BY-NC-ND 4.0
Recording0:03
South Africa · 2023
© Marion Maclean · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
Recording0:29
South Africa · 2021
© ryanderoo · iNaturalist · CC BY-NC 4.0
| # | Park | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Waterberg Plateau Park | 🇳🇦 Namibia | |
| 2 | Golden Gate Highlands National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 3 | Bale Mountains National Park | 🇪🇹 Ethiopia | |
| 4 | Tsavo West National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 5 | Gonarezhou National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 6 | Samburu National Reserve | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 7 | Ruaha National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 8 | Tsavo East National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 9 | Pilanesberg National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 10 | Mana Pools National Park | 🇿🇼 Zimbabwe | |
| 11 | Lake Manyara National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 12 | De Hoop Nature Reserve | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 13 | Lake Nakuru National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 14 | Kruger National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 15 | Serengeti National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 16 | Table Mountain National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 17 | Masai Mara National Reserve | 🇰🇪 Kenya | |
| 18 | Ngorongoro Conservation Area | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 19 | West Coast National Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 20 | Tarangire National Park | 🇹🇿 Tanzania | |
| 21 | Nairobi National Park | 🇰🇪 Kenya |
| # | City | Country | Daily sighting probability |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Johannesburg | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 2 | Pretoria | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
| # | Zoo / Centre | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Zlín-Lešná Zoo | 🇨🇿 Czechia | |
| 2 | Zoo Aquarium de Madrid | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 3 | Dullstroom Bird Of Prey & Rehabilitation Centre | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 4 | World of Birds Wildlife Sanctuary and Monkey Park | 🇿🇦 South Africa | |
| 5 | Cim d'Àligues | 🇪🇸 Spain | |
| 6 | Moholoholo Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre | 🇿🇦 South Africa |
Rare
Under 5% of wildlife watchers report a Verreaux's Eagle sighting in Tarangire National Park on a given day, based on 7 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data from 2019 to 2026. It is the 380th most-seen of the 411 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 Verreaux's Eagle in Tarangire National Park on a given day, so our monthly data shows no clear season.
Between 9 am and noon
Across all the parks we cover, that three-hour window holds the most Verreaux's 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.
20th of 21
Of the 21 parks where we can rate Verreaux's Eagle sightings, Tarangire National Park ranks 20th at under 5%. The best odds are in Waterberg Plateau Park (Namibia, about 40%), Golden Gate Highlands National Park (South Africa, about 20%) and Bale Mountains National Park (Ethiopia, about 10%).
Same genus: Aquila
The closest relatives of the Verreaux's Eagle that you can see in Tarangire National Park (genus Aquila, True Eagles) are Tawny Eagle (about 60%), African Hawk-Eagle (about 20%) and Steppe Eagle (about 10%), with each one's daily chance of a sighting.
GBIF citizen-science records
It is estimated from how often the Verreaux's Eagle is recorded against all the birds logged in Tarangire National Park (7 verified sightings from 2019 to 2026), 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.
