Long-legged buzzard
Buteo rufinus
Alexander Tiepsman · Sagarejo, Kakheti Georgia field photo
Key facts in one look
- Size
- 50–66 cm, wingspan 1.12–1.63 m
- Diet
- Rodents, lizards and other small animals
- Status in Georgia
- Resident, passage migrant and winter visitor, breeds
- Recorded regions
- Kakheti, Shida and Kvemo Kartli, Samtskhe-Javakheti and others
- Habitat
- Steppe, dry rocky slopes
- Family
- Accipitridae
- Protection
- Globally LC (2021)
The long-legged buzzard (Buteo rufinus) is one of the largest members of the buzzard genus: it is 50–66 cm long, with a wingspan of 1.12–1.63 m, and weighs 590–1,760 g. The female is larger and heavier than the male. Its plumage is very variable: there are pale, rufous and dark birds. Pale birds have a fairly plain pale head, a dark belly and a pale orange tail. It is harmless to people. The 2024 Georgian checklist lists it as a year-round resident, passage migrant and winter visitor. It breeds in Georgia. It occurs regularly in eight regions, with most records from Kakheti, Samtskhe-Javakheti and Shida Kartli. Globally its risk of extinction is low (LC, 2021), and its numbers are stable.
Identification
Long-legged buzzard: how to identify it
A large, long-winged buzzard with a pale head, a dark belly and a pale, unbarred, rufous-orange tail. It has a black patch at the bend of the underwing. It often perches in the open on a high rock, cliff or pole.
It is 50–66 cm long, with a wingspan of 1.12–1.63 m, and weighs 590–1,760 g. The female is up to 15% larger than the male and on average up to 30% heavier. Its head is fairly small, its bill large, its wings and tail long, and its legs long and strong.
The plumage is very variable, with three or four main colour morphs. Pale birds have a pale head, creamy rufous to sandy, with a dark line through the eye, and dark brown upperparts. The tail is pale rufous-orange and looks almost white from a distance. Rufous birds are more rufous-brown overall, and dark birds are brown-black with a grey, barred tail.
The similar Buteo buteo has shorter wings and tail and is usually smaller. Buteo lagopus has a white tail with a broad dark band at the tip and feathered legs. The long-legged buzzard is larger, longer-winged and more eagle-like.
Colour
Swatches are illustrative. Do not identify a species by colour alone.
It is a bird of open country: it lives on steppe and semi-desert, dry rocky slopes and fields. It occurs from sea level up to 3,900 m. It nests on cliff ledges and crags, sometimes in trees. Its range runs from southeastern Europe and North Africa to Central Asia and northern India. In Georgia most records come from Kakheti, especially around Dedoplistskaro and Sagarejo, and from Shida Kartli, at Nadarbazevi Lake and in Gori Municipality. It is common in Samtskhe-Javakheti, around Akhalkalaki and Ninotsminda, in Kvemo Kartli, near Kumisi and Gardabani, and in Mtskheta-Mtianeti, including the Kazbegi area. It also occurs in Tbilisi, in Adjara mostly on autumn migration, and in Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti, near Ushguli and Mestia. Imereti, Abkhazia and Racha have only single records.
The long-legged buzzard map shows public iNaturalist observations. Eight regions have enough records: Kakheti, Samtskhe-Javakheti, Shida and Kvemo Kartli, Mtskheta-Mtianeti, Adjara, Tbilisi and Samegrelo-Zemo Svaneti. Imereti, Abkhazia and Racha have only single records. Observations come from every month of the year, most of them from August to October.
Data: Reptiles.ge + iNaturalist · Methodology
- Field observation
- Several records in one spot
- Photo record
- Region with records
It is carnivorous and eats mainly small mammals: voles, ground squirrels, gerbils and rats. It also catches reptiles, especially lizards, birds and insects. It sometimes eats carrion, more often after the breeding season. It mostly watches for prey from a high perch or from the air, and sometimes chases it on foot on the ground.
Most birds that breed in Eurasia are migrants: in August and September they fly south to North Africa and southern Asia and return in March and April. North African birds are resident. The 2024 Georgian checklist lists it as a year-round resident, passage migrant and winter visitor. In Georgia there are records in every month, most from August to October. It is usually seen alone, in pairs or in small family groups, and on migration it also forms larger flocks. It sits for long periods in the open on a high point with a good view, and it often walks on the ground too. In Europe it usually breeds from March to July. The nest is a large pile of sticks, lined with green leaves, straw and wool. It lays 2–3 eggs on average. Incubation lasts about 28–30 days, the chicks fledge at 40–46 days, and after leaving the nest they depend on their parents for about another month.
Globally the long-legged buzzard's risk of extinction is rated low (LC, 2021). A 2021 estimate puts the number of mature birds at 100,000–499,999, and numbers are stable, while in Europe they appear to be increasing. It is threatened by wind farms, by the conversion of steppe to arable land, orchards and vineyards, which also reduces its prey, by electrocution on power lines and by poisoned carcasses. The species is listed in Appendix II of CITES and of the Bonn Convention. The 2024 Georgian checklist also rates its risk in Georgia as low (LC).
gogopopo · David J Barton · Alexander Tiepsman · Max van Leijenhorst · Giorgi Natsvlishvili · Eduardo Campos Wals · James Heal
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Yes. The 2024 Georgian checklist lists it as a year-round resident, passage migrant and winter visitor. There are observations in every month of the year.
Most often on the steppe of Kakheti, around Dedoplistskaro, in Shida Kartli, at Nadarbazevi Lake, and on the Samtskhe-Javakheti plateau. Look for it on poles and rocks in open country.
The long-legged buzzard is larger, longer-winged and longer-tailed. Pale birds have a pale head, a dark belly and a pale, unbarred orange tail.
Yes. It nests on cliff ledges, crags or in trees and usually lays 2–3 eggs.
It is 50–66 cm long, with a wingspan of 1.12–1.63 m, and weighs 590–1,760 g. The female is larger than the male.
Mainly rodents, such as voles and ground squirrels, as well as lizards, birds and insects.
The long-legged buzzard is harmless to people. Globally its risk of extinction is low and its numbers are stable. The 2024 Georgian checklist also rates it LC in Georgia.
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.
