African Wildlife & Environment Issue 78

BIRDING

southeastern portions of the central watershed, and in riparian habitat along the larger rivers like the Zambezi. In Malawi, highland birds forage in lower miombo woodland, and lower altitudes, breeding occurs in deciduous forest, more locally in dense miombo, tall riparian woodlands, and in remnants close to cultivation. Behaviour Typical of most raptors that breed in Africa, the Crowned Eagle is non-migratory. This species usually inhabits a fixed territory throughout the years during its adult life. There is evidence that the birds move about to some degree when circumstances require it, for example when they need to change mates in isolated breeding areas. The greatest movement of any notable distance is usually associated with juvenile birds, which wander relatively widely before maturation. Forty-four birds of various ages, that were ringed in southern Africa and recovered, were all found near the ringing localities. Small movements by Crowned Eagles has resulted in them being sighted in improbable habitats, such as on an open savanna hill in Kenya, an open river bed in Lewa Wildlife Conservancy and even a golf course in Nairobi.

In Kenya, 84% of the Crowned Eagle’s range is within rainforest, with an annual rainfall amount of more than 150 cm. Around stretches of East Africa, where protected areas mostly consist of open habitat, Crowned Eagles usually live in wooded areas of rocky hills and narrow riverine strips, only rarely ranging into savanna surrounding the hills. Southern Africa has been subject to the most comprehensive study of Crowned Eagle habitat, largely since many areas there would seem inhospitable to a large raptor often associated with old-growth forest. In southern Africa, its distribution south of the Limpopo River coincides largely with montane forest, although it is not restricted to that habitat and may range secondarily into plantations, usually of Eucalyptus. Once again, the critical role played by Eucalyptus trees in the survival of all raptors is illustrated. In South Africa, the Crowned Eagle occurs in both lowland and montane evergreen forest, dense woodland, and forested ravines and gorges, in open savannas and thornveld. In Zimbabwe, the eagle can be found in quite open woodlands with Baobab trees and may occasionally forage in savanna and secondary growth. It occurs in evergreen forest in the eastern highlands, in rugged, hilly terrain over the central plateau, in hills and escarpments in the

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