Exploring Pigeon Valley: The Juvenile African Crowned Eagle

This is the 57th in an ongoing series that highlights the riches of Pigeon Valley, the urban nature reserve in the heart of Glenwood. The focus of this article will be on the Juvenile African Crowned Eagle.

For some time, a juvenile African Crowned Eagle has been in the area; my first sighting was when it was peering down at Red Duikers within the forest, but I had already picked up the anxiety of the monkeys. At my house, the leaders of the troop had been staring at the reserve and barking towards something, and for a couple of days they avoided being in a place where they would be very exposed.

Unlike the darkly mottled adults, there is a lot of white on the bird; the black dots on the white would suit regal robes. Then, this past weekend, the young man doing alien clearing reported to me that he was walking up the main track when his way was barred by a large bird that opened out his wings to stop him passing.

ALSO READ: Exploring Pigeon Valley: The Mangrove Kingfisher

When I arrived, it was well into its meal. If it felt disturbed, it did not show it and, in any case, I kept well away. Soon it became clear that it was eating something relatively big; a Red Duiker. I watched for over an hour before leaving; its crop was becoming fuller and fuller as it ate.

This bird had been ringed, probably while still on the nest, and fitted with a satellite tracker. Given the scarcity of Crowned Eagles in South Africa – perhaps only 200 or so – every bird is significant. This one had previously eaten a Red Duiker, which had alarmed the staff of the reserve considerably, but I explained that this is part of the natural process of predation that would keep populations stable – the only reason that we had seen the growth in the number of Red Duikers from a few to over 60 in recent years, leading to them trying to get out of the reserve, has been the lack of predators.

If this bird finds a mate and stays to breed, there will be other positive effects. The growing population of monkeys will keep their distance, giving welcome relief to the nesting birds. One reason for the low numbers of the endangered Spotted Ground-Thrushes, for example, is their vulnerability to monkey predation. The other gain is of course interest in sightings of such magnificent birds, encouraging more visitors to the reserve.

I have posted a short video of the bird:

Crispin Hemson chairs the Friends of Pigeon Valley, a group that undertakes clearing of alien plants, keeps records of bird and mammal sightings and alerts management to any problems.

The Friends have a monthly walk at 7.30am on the second Saturday of each month. Email: friendsofpigeonvalley1@gmail.com.

Do you want to receive news alerts via Telegram? Send us a message (not an sms) with your name and surname to 060 532 5535.

You can also join the conversation on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

PLEASE NOTE: If you have signed up for our news alerts you need to save the Berea Mail Telegram number as a contact to your phone, otherwise you will not receive our alerts

Here’s where you can download Telegram on Android or Apple.