Aquila audax

Eagle on road with wallaby carcass

(Wedge-tailed Eagle)

FAMILY

Accipitridae

Species

Aquila audax

Common name

Wedge-tailed Eagle

Main colour

Very dark to black

Distinctive feature

Wedge-shaped tail and very dark body 90-100 cm long

Campus

Townsville

Description

This large bird, which ranges in size from 90 cm long for the male to 100 cm long for the female, has been occasionally seen soaring over the campus. Body dark to blackish with a paler nape and a pale patch on the wings and under tail. Tail is wedge-shaped, legs feathered to the whitish toes, eyes brown, bill bluish-white with a black tip.