Red-necked Buzzard (Buteo auguralis)

Red-necked Buzzard

Subspecies

Genus	Species	subspecies	Region	Range
Buteo	auguralis		AF	w, c

Genus

Members of the genus Buteo are broad-winged, broad-tailed hawks, Well adapted for soaring. The bill, legs and talons are of average proportions. There is much colour variation both within the species, and, by way of phases, within individual species. In all cases the young are quite different from adults in that they are all well camouflaged with an overall brown appearance with varying amounts of striping below and paler mottling above.
The 25 species are spread worldwide with the exception of Australasia and much of the Indian sub-continent.

Physical charateristics

Medium-sized buzzard with the striking reddish-brown colouration of the neck, which extends over the crown and down to the upper back. The rest of the red-necked buzzard?s upperparts are mainly blackish, except for the tail feathers which are also reddish-brown and marked with a blackish bar just before the tail tips. In contrast to the dark upperparts, the breast is mainly bright white, becoming dark brown towards the throat, and marked with an irregular patterning of dark blotches extending to the flanks. The juvenile resembles the adult, except for the colouration of the upperparts which are lighter, and the breast, which is cream rather than white and lacks the darker plumage around the throat.

wingspan min.:	0	cm	wingspan max.:	0	cm
size min.:	35	cm	size max.:	40	cm
incubation min.:	25	days	incubation max.:	30	days
fledging min.:	30	days	fledging max.:	35	days
broods:	1		eggs min.:	2
			eggs max.:	3

Range

Africa : West, Central. The red-necked buzzard has an extensive range, encompassing a broad band running from Mauritania down to Liberia in the west, and across to Ethiopia and Uganda in the east. It is also found along the coast of West Africa, including Gabon, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and north-eastern Angola

Habitat

Occupying a range of habitats, the red-necked buzzard can be found in plantations, farmland, savannah, woodland, and forest edges up to elevations of 2,500 metres

Reproduction

Builds a stick nest high up in tree. Sometims uses cliffs for nesting. The clutch is 2-3 eggs which are incubated for probably a month, with another month for the young to fledge.

Feeding habits

This red-necked buzzard?s usual hunting technique is to sit in wait on a perch, will also feed from the ground. Diet consists of wide range of small animals including rodents, birds, lizards and snakes. Known to eat anthropods and termites.

Video Red-necked Buzzard

httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6w2FbFmxYk

Conservation

This species has an extremely large range, and hence does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the range size criterion (Extent of Occurrence <20,000 km2 combined with a declining or fluctuating range size, habitat extent/quality, or population size and a small number of locations or severe fragmentation). The population trend appears to be increasing, and hence the species does not approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population trend criterion (>30% decline over ten years or three generations). The population size may be moderately small to large, but it is not believed to approach the thresholds for Vulnerable under the population size criterion (<10,000 mature individuals with a continuing decline estimated to be >10% in ten years or three generations, or with a specified population structure). For these reasons the species is evaluated as Least Concern.

Migration

Regular annual North-South migration in West Africa, moving South in Sept just after rains to breed along forest edge and woodland adjoining Guinea and Upper Congo forests. At recommencement of rains in Mar moves North into drier, more open savanna, where little studied. Movements in Central & Northeast Africa not as obvious or well understood; possibly separate population in North Angola and Southwest Zaire.

Distribution map

Red-necked Buzzard distribution range map

Planet of Birds