Changes

*[[Madagascar harrier-hawk]], ''Polyboroides radiatus''

*[[Madagascar harrier-hawk]], ''Polyboroides radiatus''

When hunting, these birds fly in a manner similar to harriers, i.e. they keep a short distance from the ground.  They will also hunt on trees, hopping among the foliage or clinging to the bark of the trunks, looking inside cavities for insects, lizards, bats, eggs and small birds; in some parts of Africa they are seen clinging upside-down on the large nests of weaver birds as they hunt them.  The articulation of the legs is constructed so as to be easily folded backwards, allowing them to use the legs to reach inside and grab prey animals. On the ground they move in search of ants, termites, frogs, snakes and small rodents. In some parts of Africa they prefer to eat plant items, especially coconuts.

When hunting, these birds fly in a manner similar to harriers, i.e. they keep a short distance from the ground.  They will also hunt on trees, hopping among the foliage or clinging to the bark of the trunks, looking inside cavities for insects, lizards, bats, eggs and small birds; in some parts of Africa they are seen clinging upside-down on the large nests of weaver birds as they hunt them, and they have been recently discovered to prey upon lemurs<ref>https://www.semanticscholar.org/paper/Polyboroides-radiatus-predation-attempts-on-Brockman/3c96af3676b7e93e422fa0288b868f6c86402692</ref>.  The articulation of the legs is constructed so as to be easily folded backwards at the intertarsal joint, allowing them to use the legs to reach inside and grab prey animals<ref>https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1474-919X.1978.tb06773.x</ref>. On the ground they move in search of ants, termites, frogs, snakes and small rodents. In some parts of Africa they prefer to eat plant items, such as palm nuts and coconuts.

 

[[Category:Birds of Prey]][[Category:Harriers]]

[[Category:Birds of Prey]][[Category:Harriers]]