 |
| Secretary Bird |
Secretary Bird Facts About Poisonous Snake Eating Bird
Secretary bird was first described by John Frederick Miller in 1779 and was given this name because of its resemblance to the European secretary. Secretary birds are large-sized beautiful birds that rarely fly and can be found hunting on the ground.
Apart from this, these birds are also known for their kicking legs and their wings which they rarely use to fly. Secretary birds are considered to be one of the most powerful birds of prey and are also known as Secretary bird Sagittarius Serpentarius.
This is a really strong ground bird that is rarely seen flying and is known to hunt on the ground. Secretary birds hunt different types of small insects, mammals, rodents and many other creatures.
The interesting thing is that this bird is especially known to hunt snakes. Secretary birds are famous for their hunting and methods of catching snakes which are a big part of their food every day.
Secretary birds are strong birds and use force that is about five times more than their body size. These birds crush and kill snakes and other prey with the help of their strong legs and then eat them whole.
It is believed that in a fight between a snake and a secretary bird, the snake is most likely to win but if the snake is lucky, it can win. Let's know interesting facts about the secretary bird and start this article,
Where Are Secretary Bird Found
Secretary birds are ground dwelling predatory birds which are large in appearance and are known for hunting snakes. These strong and tall birds are found in South Africa and can be seen mainly in the South African region.
These tall predatory birds are found in the African region in the sub-Saharan African savannas, shrublands and grasslands. The amazing fact about these birds is that these birds represent and symbolize divine glory and are considered messengers from heaven.
Secretary birds are mostly known for their long powerful bodies and strong legs like spears which are used to hunt snakes. Apart from this, these birds are known for their unique ways of hunting using their feet and not only this, these birds are also known to swallow their prey whole in one go.
The interesting thing is that a secretary bird can kick really hard and is also more powerful to kill its prey including snakes.
Scientific Name For Secretary Bird
The scientific name of the secretary bird is sagittarius serpentarius and apart from this, this bird is really beautiful bird which looks the most unique and beautiful among all the birds. This bird is also known as secret bird.
There are many different opinions about why it is known as secret bird. It is believed that this bird evolved in the 1800s. When the Europeans first saw this bird which was a large bird at that time.
This large bird used to wear a brown coat and knee-length pants with a goose-quill pen which they used to keep behind their ear. The funny thing is that its unique name has evolved from the crest of feathers which resembles a quill pen.
Habitat Of Secretary Bird
This strong-legged bird is among the ground-dwelling birds that hunt on the ground in altitudes, coastal plains, highlands and grasslands.
Secretary birds can mostly be seen living in small groups or with their partner. Not only this, these birds are known for staying together for life and staying attached to their partner throughout their life. Apart from this, these birds also take care of their loved ones.
Secretary birds have different types of physical features like long legs, black crest and black feathers covering the thighs and stomach. Secretary birds have small animals, bird eggs, lizards, grasshoppers in their diet.
The female bird of this bird species lays about two to three eggs which are blue in color and both the male and female birds stay together during the incubation period. Then after some time the eggs hatch and the babies come out and the babies are dependent on their parents.
What Do Secretary Bird Look Like
Secretary birds are really strong-legged, colorful and beautiful ground-hunting birds that appear similar to eagles through their legs and height and their face and beak.
The male bird and the female bird look almost identical with brown color on their body and back, light brown tail feathers and two very long central black tail feathers.
These birds have hair on half of their legs, due to which it looks as if they are wearing half pants. The wing cover of secretary birds is gray-blue in color, while the underside is gray-white. Read- King Penguin Special Facts That Will Surprise You
%20(1)%20(1)%20(1).jpg "Secretary Bird Facts About Poisonous Snake Eating Bird") |
| Secretary Bird |
Secretary Bird Size And Weight
It is a long-legged powerful bird with a slender but strong body. The body of the secretary bird is about 4.1-4.9 feet long and their wingspan is about 75-85 inches.
A secretary bird is about 10 times the size of a normal sparrow. These birds weigh around 2.3 – 4.3 kg and the female secretary birds are smaller and lighter than the males.
What Do Secretary Bird Eat
Secretary birds are carnivorous and hunting birds. These birds hunt almost all small mammals, birds and insects including rabbits, mice, mongooses and many others.
But secretary birds are especially known for their hunting skills and methods and are also known for their snake hunting.
Secretary birds have wings to fly yet these birds rarely use them for hunting and eat other animals.
Secretary birds are carnivorous birds that travel about 30 kilometers every day on the ground in search of food. Secretary birds hunt and eat snakes, rabbits, mice, small mammals, large insects, lizards, small birds, crabs and other animals in their food.
These powerful birds are known for their ability to catch and kill all types of snakes and not only this, they also kill poisonous snakes.
You will be surprised to know that secretary birds are smart enough to take advantage of fire. Secretary birds search for small prey throughout the burnt area that were unable to escape the fire.
These smart birds i.e. secretary birds use two different hunting techniques. Secretary birds catch their prey by chasing it and then they either attack it with their beak or keep attacking it until the prey dies.
While attacking the prey, these birds spread both their wings and raise the feather crest behind the head. Some studies suggest that birds like dinosaurs that roamed the earth five million years ago may have also used the same attack strategy.
Secretary Bird Nests
Both the male and female secretary bird fly in wide circles and swoop and dive downwards. The birds will sometimes catch hold of prey in midair and the monogamous pair work together to build a large nest up to 8 feet across.
The nest is made from twigs, sticks, mammal hair, dung, leaves and grass. The bird works on the nest for about six months and it has been observed that birds use the same nest for several years.
Once the nest is built, one to three yellowish-green eggs are laid every two to three days and the female takes over the incubation. The eggs hatch in that order and both parents feed the babies with insects and other small prey.
For the first few weeks, one of the parents always stays on the nest and feeds the babies, taking care of the chicks. In the beginning, the parents give small pieces of meat to feed their chicks.
Later, at about 40 days of age, the babies learn to eat small mammals and reptiles that the parents drop directly into the nest. By about six weeks, the babies look like fully feathered adults.
Babies start using their wings at about 9 weeks and fly at 12 weeks of age. Flying for these birds means falling from the nest with some flapping of their wings.
The babies start moving on their own after a while, with the parents teaching their offspring to hunt, kick and fly until they fall to the ground. Read- Potoo Looks Like Broken Part Of A Tree This Unique Bird
 |
| Secretary Bird |
How Long Do Secretary Bird Live
It is believed that the lifespan of a secretary bird can be about 10-15 years in the wild and sometimes even more in the zoo.
How Fast Can A Secretary Bird Fly
These birds have a wingspan of about 6.3-7.1 feet but secretary birds rarely use them to fly unless required. Because flying is a bit difficult for these birds.
But the funny thing is that secretary birds have the ability to fly high and they can go up to a height of 12500 feet which is about 3800 meters from the ground.
How Do Secretary Bird Communicate
These birds are mostly known to remain silent throughout the day but secretary birds are also known for their loud croaking sound which is deep and hoarse which is considered similar to a frog or a crow.
Male secretary birds make such sounds when they are looking for their female partner or during courtship rituals.
If you have never seen a secretary bird then you may not know that these birds have a wide range of vocalizations which these birds use to show and communicate things among themselves.
Secretary birds are mostly not active until after sunrise and apart from that they use hoarse squeaking sounds, raspy calls, squeaks, low whispers and more to communicate with other secretary birds.
How Many Secretary Bird Are Left In The World
Secretary birds are rare bird species and can be seen living in Africa and its surrounding areas. Secretary birds are not found in areas or places where there is extreme weather.
These long-legged birds are mostly found in forests and grasslands. According to the data of 2016, these birds have been declared vulnerable to extinction and their number is around 67,000.
Secretary Bird Facts For Kids
1. What is special about the secretary bird?
The secretary bird is identified by its strong long legs and a dramatic black crest of feathers behind the head. The body of the secretary bird is covered with white-brown feathers, with two long, black tail feathers present. Apart from this, its bare face is mostly yellow, orange or red.
2. What is the enemy of the secretary bird?
These birds eat their prey whole. These birds are territorial and make noise about it. These birds whistle loudly, make a hoarse sound to protect their territory or attract their life partner to share it with them. The natural enemies of these birds are humans, eagles, large snakes and other carnivorous animals that hunt them.
3. Which bird is called the secretary bird?
It is the only living predatory bird with terrestrial habits of the dry uplands of Africa and apart from this it is a long-legged bird, with a slender but powerful body.
4. What does the secretary bird symbolize?
This bird is equivalent to the lion on earth. Not only this, it is a powerful bird whose legs are depicted as spears and knobs which help it well in hunting snakes. Apart from this, it symbolizes the protection of the nation against its enemies.
5. Are secretary birds strong?
These birds are powerful and according to a new study, this bird can kick its prey at a speed of 195 Newtons, which is equal to about 5 times its body weight.
6. What is the other name of secretary bird?
The common name of this bird as all are in Latin languages is serpent or secretary. The justification of the first is due to the fact that this bird hunts snakes.
7. What is the ancestor of secretary bird?
This bird is mostly considered as an unusual predatory bird in the order Falconiformes, but it has some stork-like features that represent an old common lineage with the Ciconiiform waterbirds.
8. What is the characteristic of secretary bird?
These birds have unusually long legs (about twice as long as other land birds of similar body mass), which is thought to be an adaptation to the bird's method of hunting.
9. What is the introduction of secretary bird?
This long-legged bird is an iconic member of sub-Saharan savanna habitats. Apart from that, the birds are unmistakably beautiful in appearance, with long legs, long tail feathers, and mostly brown plumage with black wings and thighs.
10. What is the Spiritual Meaning of the Secretary Bird?
The Secretary Bird is a powerful bird, with its legs depicted as spears and knobs that help it well in hunting snakes.