The secretary bird (Sagittarius Serpentarius) is a big raptor that is related to hawks and eagles. The name comes from the quill-like crests on the back of its head, which resemble 18th-century clerks with pens tucked into their wigs. Another unique feature of this bird. Eyelashes. Makeup artists would kill for these long, luscious lashes.
Brian Connolly has been photographing nature for 10 years. Despite his experience, the secretary bird has managed to astound him. “From what I’ve witnessed, the secretary bird is truly odd,” he told Bored Panda. While chasing snakes on the ground, they stomp them with their dinosaur-like legs and talons.
And it is completely correct. Secretary birds are nocturnal carnivorous raptors that eat a range of foods, and it is commonly accepted that they are capable of eradicating snakes in African grasslands. Unlike other raptors, the secretary bird is largely terrestrial, which means it hunts for food on foot. The secretary bird may travel more than 18 miles (30 km) in a single day in search of snakes, insects, and other species.
In addition to eating snakes like as adders and cobras, secretary birds will consume lizards, amphibians, rodents, and bird eggs. While larger prey is sometimes trampled to death before being consumed, little animals are usually eaten whole. To extract food from hiding places, the secretary bird stomps on the ground with its huge, robust feet.
According to Connolly, the problems in photographing secretary birds are equal to those in photographing other animal. They move quickly, making it challenging to keep them engaged. The secretary bird looks more like a friendly stork than a predatory bird. These enormous birds may reach 4.5 feet (1.35 m), 7.3 pounds (3.3 kg), and 6.5 feet in height, weight, and wingspan, respectively (2 m). The secretary bird has a small head and a hooked beak. It has a crimson face and its plumage is a delicate, bluish grey. They feature black flying feathers as well as black feathers on their thighs and backs of their heads. They utilize their lengthy, muscular legs to attack prey, as previously stated.
These lovely creatures prefer broad grasslands, steppes, and savannas with abundance of trees. They like areas with short grass so that they can hunt more effectively. Secretary birds build large nests in acacia or thorn trees out of long, flat twigs and grass that may be up to 8 feet wide and 1 foot deep. Their nests typically grow in size from year to year. After hunting, they return to their nests shortly before sunset to spend the night. Because these areas restrict their movement, these birds avoid woodlands and dense shrubs.
During courting, they chase one other by extending their wings upward and backward, similar to how they pursue ground prey. Mating occurs on the ground or in the massive nests high in Acacia trees. The female lays 2 to 3 oval eggs over the period of 2 to 3 days. The female incubates the rough-textured eggs for an additional 45 to 50 days.
The young begin flapping their wings at 60 days of age, and wing feathers begin to sprout at 80 days. While they still spend the most of their time in the nest, they are beginning to go out with their parents, who are teaching them how to hunt.
People in Africa have loved the secretary bird for its extraordinary beauty and ability to ward off snakes and pests. It’s even on the Sudanese flag and the South African coat of arms.
The secretarybird was first described by the Dutch naturalist Arnout Vosmaer in 1769, based on a live specimen brought to Holland from the Cape of Good Hope two years before by a representative of the Dutch East India Company. According to Vosmaer, the Dutch settlers named the animal “sagittarius” because they thought its stride resembled that of an archer.
He also claimed that farmers bred the bird to battle pests surrounding their properties and speculated that the term “secretarius” was a corruption of “sagittarius.” Farmers raised the bird to battle insects. According to Ian Glenn of the University of the Free State, Vosmaer’s “sagittarius” may have been mispronounced or erroneously translated from “secretarius,” rather than the other way around.
