Changeable Hawk-Eagle

The changeable hawk-eagle, or crested hawk-eagle, is a large but slender eagle whose plumage varies from pale to dark with age and moult, which gives it its name. Like other booted eagles it has feathered legs. Females are larger than males, on average by about 7%, though the difference can be much greater. Size varies considerably across its range and between subspecies. It was formerly placed in the genus Spizaetus, but the Old World hawk-eagles were moved to Nisaetus when that group proved not to be natural (Wikipedia, general species account).

It is a typical hawk-eagle: an agile forest predator that readily switches between birds, mammals, reptiles and other vertebrates as prey. Of all the members of its genus it is the most widely distributed, adaptable and abundant, occurring widely across tropical Asia. In India it is resident with a large range. SoIB 2023 estimates a long-term decline of about 38% with a stable current trend, and rates it a Low conservation priority (Wikipedia, general species account; SoIB 2023).