African Goshawk

Specie is able to hunt lions and hippos as is a large raptor

African Goshawk - An Expert Woodland Predatory Machine

The African Goshawk (Accipiter tachiro), which is also known as the Afrikaanse Sperwer, is an avian expert at pursuing prey through the thick woodlands in which it likes to live. This beautiful, medium-sized raptor is distributed widely throughout most of the African countries south of the Sahara and prefers to live in forests and riverine woodlands This bird is not fussy about nesting in or hunting from bushes and trees that are alien invaders in Africa, such as eucalyptus.

African Goshawks have shorter wings than many other raptors, which allow s them to maneuver through thick trees and bushes and catch its prey, often, in mid flight. The average wingspan of these beautiful birds is about 70 centimeters or 27.6 inches. These compact raptors measure approximately 38 to 45 centimeters in length – about 15 to 17.7 inches, with the females being larger than the males. Adult African Goshawks weigh approximately 220 to 360 grams – or about 7.7 to about 12.7 ounces.

The male African Goshawk is blue-gray on its top side and has a white chest that has rufous-colored bars. The underwing of this raptor is also barred. This bird has yellow eyes and yellow legs. The upper body of a female African Goshawk, on the other hand, is dark brown in color. She also has a white and brown barred chest, although the markings are less fine than those on a male. Immature African Goshawks are also brown.

For the most part, these birds, though common, are not frequently seen, as they tend to remain hidden in the thick trees and bushes from which they like to ambush prey. However, they are known for making circling flights high up in the air early in the morning and sometimes in the early evenings. As they fly, the African Goshawk makes a distinctive call that consists of two to three sharp clicks in intervals of about two to three seconds.

The African Goshawk is a monogamous bird that mates for life. Between the months of July and December, the females lay approximately one to three eggs. After an approximately 35- to 37-day incubation period, the chicks hatch and will be taken care of by their parents for approximately 30 to 35 more days.

Picture of the African goshawk by Dick Daniels and is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.

The African Goshawk is classified as Least Concern. Does not qualify for a more at risk category. Widespread and abundant taxa are included in this category.