Lesser spotted eagle

The nesting area of this species if from the Elbe Valley to Belarus and the Leningrad region, Hungary, the Balkan Peninsula, Asia Minor, the Caucasus, northern Iran, India and northern Burma. It winters mainly in Asia Minor and East Africa, and the migration route passes through the Burgas bay, the Bosphorus and the Aqaba bay. In Bulgaria it is a breeding summer visitor, passage migrant and winter visitor. Most of its population is in the Eastern Rhodopes, Sakar, Derventa hills and Strandzha, a little in the Eastern Balkan Mountains and Eastern Sredna Gora. It can also be found around the Danube valley and along the banks of the Danube and the islands, the northern slopes of the Rhodopes, Vitosha and Sashtinska Sredna Gora.

In Bulgaria, the Lesser spotted eagle reaches a body length of 62 cm and a wingspan of 145 cm. Adults have brown plumage, black flight feathers, white spots on the wings and a black tail with a white uniform spot. The iris is yellow. In flight, the feathers below are black. The tail is short. The juveniles are brown with a well-formed yellow spot on the nape.

They nest mainly on deciduous trees. The female usually lays 2 eggs at the beginning of May, the incubation continues for 38-41 days. The young ones leave the nests at the age of about 55 days. Found in the nutrition range are the Common Vole, the Hamster, the Lizard, the Slow Worm, the Water Frog.

Preserved forest massifs of beech, oak or mixed plantations, old field-protection belts and other forest areas, in the vicinity to vast herbaceous associations and agricultural lands that the birds use for hunting.

Unknown.

The species is included in the Red Book of Bulgaria with the category “Vulnerable” (VU). The Lesser spotted eagle is also present in Annexes 2 and 3 of the Biodiversity Act (BDA) and is included in Annex I to Directive 2009/147/ EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 November 2009 on the conservation of wild birds.

It is also included in the Red List of the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) with the category – “Least Concern” (LC).

*Note: For the description of birds is used information from: Golemanski, V. & al. (eds). 2015. Red Data Book of the Republic of Bulgaria. Vol. 2. Animals. BAS & MoEW, Sofia [English ed.: ISBN 978-954-9746-22-8 (IBER – BAS), 978-954-8497-18-3 (MoEW)]; Michev T., D. Simeonov, L. Profirov. 2012. Birds of the Balkan Peninsula. Ecotan, Sofia, 300 pp; the website of the IUCN (International Union for Conservation of Nature).