Indian Spotted Eagle
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| Aquila hastata (Lesson, 1831) | ||||||||||||||
 Range of A. hastata in dark green |
The Indian Spotted Eagle (Aquila hastata) is a large bird of prey. It is about 60 cm in length and has a wingspan of 150cm. Like all eagles, it belongs to the family Accipitridae.
It was earlier considered the resident eastern subspecies of the Lesser Spotted Eagle.[1][2] These species and their relative, the Greater Spotted Eagle, stand apart from all other true eagles. They should probably better be removed from the genus Aquila and united with the Long-crested Eagle in Lophaetus, or all four should be moved to Ictinaetus[citation needed].
This eagle is found in lightly wooded habitats in India. Unlike the Greater Spotted Eagle which is a winter visitor to Indian wetlands, this species does not show any special affinity for wetland habitats.
References
- ^ Rasmussen P. C., Anderton J (2005) Birds of South Asia. The Ripley Guide. Vols 1 & 2. Washington DC and Barcelona: Smithsonian Institution and Lynx Edicions.
- ^ Parry, S. J., Clark, W. S. and Prakash, V. (2002) On the taxonomic status of the Indian Spotted Eagle Aquila hastata. Ibis 144: 665-675.
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