Banded snake-eagle

Banded Snake-eagle
Scientific classification
Kingdom Information
Domain	Eukaryota
Kingdom	Animalia
Subkingdom	Bilateria
Branch	Deuterostomia
Phylum Information
Phylum	Chordata
Sub-phylum	Vertebrata
Infraphylum	Gnathostomata
Class Information
Superclass	Tetrapoda
Class	Aves
Sub-class	Neornithes
Infra-class	Neoaves
Order Information
Superorder	Passerimorphae
Order	Accipitriformes
Sub-order	Accipitres
Family Information
Superfamily	Accipitroidea
Family	Accipitridae
Sub-family	Circaetinae
Genus Information
Genus	Circaetus
Species Information
Species	C. cinerascens
Population statistics
Conservation status	Least concern

The banded snake eagle (Circaetus cinerascens), also called the western banded snake eagle, is a species of eagle of the family Accipitridae, and found in sub-Saharan Africa.

Description

The banded snake eagle is medium-sized, with a length of 23 inches, a wingspan 0f 3 feet 8 inches, and a body weight of up to 2 pounds 6 ounces. It is gray-brown in color above, with back and upper wings a darker shade than the rest. Head, chest and belly are brown, becoming whitish with brown streaking about midway down. The tail is marked with three bands: light gray at the base, white in the middle, and black at the end, giving the bird its name.

Juveniles are somewhat paler, with more brown upper parts. Sub-adults are predominantly gray, with many feathers tipped in white, and bears light streaking on upper legs.

Range and habitat

The banded snake eagle is found from Senegal and Gambia to western Ethiopia and south to Namibia and Zimbabwe. The habitat consists of open savannah with scattered forest, thornscrub, and forested rivers; it is not found with the rain forests of the Congo river basin. Although called a snake eagle, it actively hunts prey in addition to snakes, such as other reptiles, birds and rodents.