Steppe eagle
Aquila nipalensis
Giorgi Natsvlishvili · Nadarbazevi Lake Georgia field photo
Key facts in one look
- Size
- 60–89 cm, wingspan 1.65–2.15 m
- Diet
- Ground squirrels and other small mammals, carrion
- Status in Georgia
- Summer visitor and passage migrant, does not breed
- Recorded regions
- Shida Kartli; Kakheti; Mtskheta-Mtianeti; Adjara; Tbilisi; Kvemo Kartli
- Habitat
- Steppe and semi-desert
- Family
- Accipitridae
- Protection
- Globally EN (2021); in Georgia EN (2024)
The steppe eagle (Aquila nipalensis) is a large bird of prey: it is 60–89 cm long, with a wingspan of 1.65–2.15 m, and weighs about 2–4.9 kg. The female is larger than the male. The adult is an almost uniform dark brown, with a long, thick neck, a relatively small head and a long yellow gape. In flight the juvenile shows a broad white band along the underwing. It is harmless to people. The 2024 Georgian checklist lists it as a summer visitor and passage migrant, and it does not breed in Georgia. Most observations come from spring and autumn migration, with the most in October and April. On migration it is seen regularly in six regions: Shida Kartli, Kakheti, Mtskheta-Mtianeti, Adjara, Tbilisi and Kvemo Kartli. Most records come from Shida Kartli and Kakheti. Globally its risk of extinction is high (EN, 2021), and it is also rated EN in Georgia.
Identification
Steppe eagle: how to identify it
A large, bulky, plain dark brown eagle with a long neck, a small head and a long yellow gape that reaches past the middle of the eye. The juvenile has a broad white band along the underwing.
It is 60–89 cm long, with a wingspan of 1.65–2.15 m. It weighs about 2–4.9 kg; the female is up to 15% larger than the male. The legs are feathered to the toes, and the feathering looks somewhat shaggy.
The adult is an almost uniform dark brown, sometimes with a rusty-buff patch on the nape. On the underwing the flight feathers are grey with dark bars, and the trailing edge and wingtips are black. The juvenile is brown or grey-brown; it has a broad white band along the underwing, white tips to the wing and tail feathers, and a white patch above the tail.
The adult of the similar Aquila heliaca has a pale golden nape and white shoulder patches. Aquila chrysaetos has a longer tail and a golden nape. The best mark of the steppe eagle is its long yellow gape, which reaches to or past the middle of the eye, and its oval nostrils.
Colour
Swatches are illustrative. Do not identify a species by colour alone.
It breeds in steppe and semi-desert, up to 2,300 m in mountain areas. It has traditionally built its nest on the ground as a large platform, but more and more often it now nests a few metres up in bushes or trees, or on man-made structures. It winters in south-east Africa and southern Asia, in dry desert and savanna country. It avoids crossing the sea, so on migration it gathers in large numbers at narrow land passages. It also turns up at rubbish dumps. In Georgia it is seen most often in Shida Kartli, at Nadarbazevi Lake, especially in October, and in Gori Municipality. It is also often seen in Kakheti, in Lagodekhi and Kvareli municipalities, especially in April, and in Sagarejo and Dedoplistskaro municipalities. It has also been seen in Mtskheta-Mtianeti, near Gorovani, on the northern edge of Tbilisi around Gldani and near Stepantsminda, in Adjara at Sakhalvasho and in Kobuleti Municipality, especially in September and October, in Tbilisi at Lisi Lake, and in Kvemo Kartli, in Tsalka Municipality and at Jandari Lake. In Samtskhe-Javakheti there is only one record, near Borjomi.
The steppe eagle map combines public iNaturalist observations. Regions are taken from the records-by-region table, and the status column separates regions with enough records from regions with too few records. Records run from February to November, with the most in October and April. Record counts reflect observation effort rather than population density.
Data: Reptiles.ge + iNaturalist · Methodology
- Region with records
It is carnivorous. On its breeding grounds it eats mainly small mammals, and in some areas ground squirrels make up most of its food. It also catches voles, hamsters, hares and birds. In winter it feeds mainly on mole rats in East Africa and on termites and small birds in southern Africa. It often eats carrion and also feeds at rubbish dumps.
It is a full migrant. It leaves its breeding grounds between August and October or November and returns between January and May. The 2024 Georgian checklist lists it as a summer visitor and passage migrant. In Georgia observations run from February to November, with the most in October and April. It has hardly been seen here in summer: there is only one record in June and none in July. It often perches upright in the open, on the ground, on a mound or on a pole. Outside Georgia, on its breeding grounds, it usually lays 2 eggs, sometimes 1 to 3. Incubation lasts about 45 days. The chicks leave the nest quickly, at 55–65 days, because a nest on the ground is at risk from predators, fire, livestock and people. A successful nest usually raises one or two young.
Globally the steppe eagle's risk of extinction is rated high (EN, 2021). A 2015 estimate puts the number of mature birds at 50,000–75,000, and numbers are falling fast. In the west of its range, in Romania, Moldova and Ukraine, it has already died out. The main threats are the conversion of steppe to farmland, persecution, electrocution on power lines, wind farms, pesticide poisoning, spring fires that destroy nests on the ground, and the taking of chicks from nests for sale. On its wintering grounds the veterinary drug diclofenac is dangerous to it. The species is listed in Appendices I and II of the Bonn Convention and Appendix II of CITES. The 2024 Georgian checklist also rates its risk in Georgia as high (EN).
Giorgi Natsvlishvili · lzazadze · Nikita Tiunov · samu_eli
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Yes, but it does not breed here. The 2024 Georgian checklist lists it as a summer visitor and passage migrant. It is seen most often on migration, in April and October.
In October most often in Shida Kartli, at Nadarbazevi Lake, and in April in Kakheti, in Lagodekhi and Kvareli municipalities. In autumn it is also seen in Adjara at Sakhalvasho, and in Mtskheta-Mtianeti, Tbilisi and Kvemo Kartli.
It is a large, plain dark brown eagle with a long yellow gape that reaches past the middle of the eye. In flight the juvenile shows a broad white band along the underwing.
No. The 2024 Georgian checklist does not list it as a breeding bird. It breeds on the steppes from south-east European Russia to Kazakhstan, China and Mongolia.
It is 60–89 cm long, with a wingspan of 1.65–2.15 m, and weighs about 2–4.9 kg. The female is larger than the male.
Mainly ground squirrels and other small mammals, as well as birds and carrion. In winter it also eats termites.
The steppe eagle is harmless to people. Its risk of extinction is high: it is rated EN both globally and in Georgia. The species is listed in Appendix I of the Bonn Convention.
References
What this profile is based on
Species profiles are compiled from peer-reviewed literature and established biodiversity databases, and are reviewed as new taxonomic and conservation data become available.
Prepared by the Reptiles.ge editorial team from the sources listed here.
