Secretary Bird   (Sagittarius serpentarius)

     by Machelle Johnson

Just for fun I thought I would write about something way out there, half way around the world-out there. Recently my parents went on a trip to Africa. It was my dad's turn to pick where they would go and he said he wanted to go on an African Safari, so that's just what they did! I told them they had to look for a Secretary Bird, and showed them pictures and videos. They saw lions, hippos, giraffes, wildebeest, wart hogs, crocodiles, elephants, lots of birds, and yes, they saw a Secretary Bird!

I'm fascinated by these very large birds with an eagle-like body on crane-like legs, they can be over 4 feet tall with a wing span of 7 feet! And they prey on SNAKES! Holy-Moly, have you see a video of this bird stomping on a snake?? Incredible! They use their wings to protect them from snake strikes because a bite to a hollow feather won't hurt them, and their feet and legs are protected by tough scales. They also prey on insects, mammals ranging in size from mice to hares and mongoose, crabs, lizards, tortoises, small birds and bird eggs. There are even some reports of secretary birds killing young gazelles and cheetah cubs. It is also said they they can be locally important, being kept as pest controllers by farmers to rid of snakes.

They are ground-hunters, but they can and do fly. They nest high in the tops of Acacia trees, building nests that can measure 8 feet wide and 1 foot deep. They prefer open grasslands for hunting, and may travel over 30 kilometers a day in search of prey. They can stomp on prey with a force equal to 5 times their own body weight, which on average is 8.9 lbs.

Adults typically hunt alone, but can also hunt in pairs and sometimes as loose familial flocks, stalking through the habitat with long strides. Prey is flushed out of tall grass by the birds stomping on the surrounding vegetation. It also waits near fires, eating anything it can that is trying to escape. They can either catch prey by chasing it and striking with the bill and swallowing, or stamping on prey until it is rendered stunned or unconscious enough to swallow.

So why is it called a Secretary Bird instead of Raptor Crane, or Snake Hawk, or something like that? One theory is that the feathers jutting out behind the bird's head reminded 19-century Europeans of the quill pens that secretaries tucked behind their ears or in to their wigs, while its grey and black body was reminiscent of their tailcoats and pants. Seems silly to me to call such a fierce bird of prey a secretary though. Another theory is that the name derives from the Arabic 'saqr-et-tair', or 'hunter bird'. This makes much more sense to me, although Snake Hawk is pretty cool. Africans call it the marching ealge, and sometimes call it the Devil's Horse, which gives a thought-provoking visual image.

I've attached a video [download video] that my mom took with her phone but you should also google this bird and see more images and videos. They are so cool!!

Resources: Wikipedia, San Diego Zoo Animals & Plants, http://www.howitworksdaily.com, video of Secretary Bird taken by DyAnn Houston on the plains of the Serengeti, August 2018.
Photos: Top photo by Machelle Johnson's Mom; Bottom photo from Wikipedia.
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