Long-crested Eagle
Lophaetus occipitalis
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Cordats)
- ClassAves (Aus)
- OrderAccipitriformes
- FamilyAccipitridae (Accipítrids)
- GenusLophaetus
- SpeciesLophaetus occipitalis (Long-crested Eagle)
The long-crested eagle (Lophaetus occipitalis) is an African bird of prey characterised by its shaggy crest of feathers. In the family Accipitridae which includes all the eagles, it is currently placed in a monotypic genus Lophaetus. It is found throughout mid- and southern Africa, with differing home ranges due to food availability and suitable habitat area, but lives mainly on forest edges and near moist areas. Breeding may occur at any time of year, depending on food availability; it lays 1 or 2 eggs as is usual for raptors. It commonly eats smaller mammals, but will also eat other vertebrates and invertebrates. Wikipedia →
Closest Relatives at Mana Pools National Park
African Fish-Eagle
Haliaeetus vocifer
Bateleur
Terathopius ecaudatus
White-backed Vulture
Gyps africanus
African Harrier-Hawk
Polyboroides typus
Hooded Vulture
Necrosyrtes monachus
African Hawk-Eagle
Aquila spilogaster
Brown Snake Eagle
Circaetus cinereus
Black Kite
Milvus migrans
Tawny Eagle
Aquila rapax
Martial Eagle
Polemaetus bellicosus
Banded Snake-Eagle
Circaetus cinerascens
Lizard Buzzard
Kaupifalco monogrammicus
📅 Monthly Probability
Fewer than 5 records of Long-crested Eagle at Mana Pools National Park — not enough to chart months honestly.
☀️ When They're Spotted
Most active during daytime hours (6am–6pm) · across all parks (global)
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there