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Oriental Honey Buzzard

Oriental Honey Buzzard

Pernis ptilorhynchus

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The Crested Honey Buzzard, or Oriental Honey Buzzard, is a fairly large raptor named for its taste for bee and wasp larvae. It breeds in Siberia, northern China and Japan and winters in South-east Asia and the Indian subcontinent, with resident populations in the tropics. It shows adaptations for raiding nests, such as dense, protective head feathers. Despite the name it is closer to kites than to true buzzards.

Did you know?

  • Young birds resemble hawk-eagles, possibly a form of mimicry.
  • Some birds fly about 700 km non-stop over the East China Sea in autumn.

About the species

Identification

A slim, long-necked, small-headed raptor with the pigeon-like profile typical of honey buzzards. The wings are fairly long and broad, and the long tail shows dark bars. Plumage varies from brown to variegated forms, and some birds have a small crest. The sexes differ. It is told from Common Buzzard by its smaller head, longer neck and long, clearly barred tail, and from European Honey Buzzard by its broader wings with six “fingers”.

Family

Accipitridae

Size

Large (crow)

Colours

brown, white, grey

About the habitat

Forested lowlands and hills broken by glades; in the tropics also small groves near villages.

Diet

Mainly the brood of social bees and wasps, with pieces of comb and honey; also other insects such as cicadas, and occasionally small birds, reptiles or frogs.

Behaviour

Usually quiet, soaring singly or in pairs or perching on treetops. In courtship it performs wing-clapping and roller-coaster flights. Northern populations are migratory, some making non-stop flights of about 700 km over the East China Sea.

Sources

Photo: Timothy A. Gonsalves, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Oriental honey buzzard Mudumalai Mar21 DSC01405.jpg

Text: Wikipedia (English), CC BY-SA 4.0 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Crested_honey_buzzard

See also