📸 PhotoPhoto: Ezra Sheyner · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons Source
Steppe Eagle
Aquila nipalensis (Steppe Eagle · ソウゲンワシ)
💡 Everyday Comparisons for Size, Mass & Speed
- 💡 Its 1.9 m wingspan is almost equal to the length of a single bed (about 2 m).
- 💡 According to the National List of Species of Korea, it feeds on fresh carrion and hunts animals up to the size of a hare; its call resembles a crow's, though it is generally silent outside display.
Reference standards: coach bus ~12 m, mid-size car ~4.9 m, compact car ~1 t, basketball hoop 3.05 m, credit card 8.56 cm.
📖 1. Overview
The Steppe Eagle is a large eagle favoring dry habitats such as deserts, steppes, and prairies. It breeds from eastern Romania to Mongolia and winters in Africa and India.
🦴 2. Anatomy & Morphology
The upperparts are brown with blackish flight feathers and tail. It is larger and darker than the Tawny Eagle with a relatively slender neck, and juveniles and adults show varied plumage tones.
🔍 3. Ecology & Behavior
It readily feeds on fresh carrion, captures small mammals up to the size of a hare and birds up to the size of a quail, and also steals prey from other predators. It builds a stick nest in a tree and lays 1–3 eggs.
🇰🇷 4. Connection to Korea
No direct record connecting this species to Korea has been found.
📚 Sources & References
- • IUCN Red List EN (2021) — https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/22696038/205452572
- • IUCN Red List category EN — latest assessment at iucnredlist.org
- • doi.org — avilist.v2026
- • iucnredlist.org — 205452572
- • 국가생물종목록(국립생물자원관) ktsn 120000001614 — https://species.nibr.go.kr/home/mainHome.do?cont_link=009&subMenu=009002&contCd=009002&ktsn=120000001614
- • wikidata.org — Q179359
- • commons.wikimedia.org — File:Мангистауская область, степной орёл.jpg
- • species.nibr.go.kr — mainHome.do
- • Silhouette: PhyloPic — Andy Wilson · CC0 1.0
Recorded dimensions are widely cited representative estimates from public literature and may vary by study or specimen.