Grasshopper buzzard facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Grasshopper buzzard |
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The grasshopper buzzard (Butastur rufipennis) is a fascinating bird of prey. It lives in a specific part of Africa, just north of the equator. This bird belongs to the Accipitridae family, which includes other birds like eagles and hawks.
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What Does the Grasshopper Buzzard Look Like?
A grown-up grasshopper buzzard has a grey-brown back. Its head is darker, and its feathers have dark streaks. When its feathers are new, they have reddish-brown edges, but these wear off over time. Its grey tail has faint brown stripes.
Wings and Body
The larger wing feathers are light reddish-brown. The main flight feathers have black tips, making a bright reddish patch when the bird flies. The other wing feathers are reddish-brown, turning dark brown at the tips, which are white.
Face and Legs
Its chin and throat are whitish, with three black stripes on each side of its throat. The chest is reddish-brown with thin black streaks. Its belly and thighs are also reddish-brown but without markings. The feathers under its wings are whitish. The bird's eyes, legs, and cere (the waxy part above the beak) are yellow. The beak is black at the tip and yellow at the base.
Size Differences
Female grasshopper buzzards are a little bigger than males. Males usually weigh about 310 to 340 grams (11 to 12 ounces). Females are slightly heavier, weighing 300 to 380 grams (10.5 to 13.4 ounces). These birds are about 30 to 35 centimeters (12 to 14 inches) long. Their wings can spread up to 90 centimeters (35 inches) wide.
Young Grasshopper Buzzards
Young grasshopper buzzards have a bright reddish-brown head and neck with dark streaks. As they get older, their head becomes the same color as their back. Their tail also gets stripes, and the reddish edges on their feathers become less clear.
Where Do Grasshopper Buzzards Live?
Grasshopper buzzards like to live in woodlands and at the edges of forests. They also enjoy dry acacia savannas. You might also find them near marshes or in areas where fires have recently cleared the land.
Their Home Range
These birds are found in a wide area of Africa. Their home stretches from Senegal and Gambia in the west, all the way east to Ethiopia. They also travel south to places like Sierra Leone, Cameroon, northeastern Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, and northern Tanzania.
Seasonal Travels
Grasshopper buzzards are partial migrants. This means they move around depending on the season. They travel south during the dry northern winter, from September to March. Then, they fly north again in the summer, from April to September, when the rains come. This is when they breed. Generally, they stay between 9-15° North latitude for breeding. In the dry season, they move south to about 5° North. They only go south of the equator in eastern Africa. Their exact locations can change a lot each year.
What Do Grasshopper Buzzards Eat?
Grasshopper buzzards mainly eat insects. But they are not picky! They also hunt small birds, rodents, and reptiles. They usually hunt from a low branch, looking for large insects, which are their favorite food. They catch their prey on the ground or sometimes in the air after a short chase.
Hunting Habits
These birds are quite social. You can often see them in groups of 50 to 100 birds. They are especially common in areas that have recently burned. This is because many insects emerge after a fire, making them easy to catch.
Diet Changes with Seasons
During the non-breeding season, grasshopper buzzards are experts at catching grasshoppers. When it's time to breed, their diet changes. They eat a variety of insects, mostly grasshoppers and beetles. They also eat scorpions and sun spiders. During the breeding season, they eat more reptiles and other animals with backbones. Frogs, rodents, and birds are also a regular part of their diet at this time.
Reproduction and Life Cycle
The breeding season for grasshopper buzzards is usually between March and May in the northern parts of their range. However, the exact time they lay eggs can depend on the region.
Nests and Eggs
They build their nests in the fork of a tree, usually in a low tree. Sometimes, they build them about 10 meters (33 feet) high in taller trees. The nest is made of sticks, with a cup-shaped center lined with green leaves. Female buzzards lay one to three bluish-white eggs, which have some dark markings.
Nesting Details
We don't know all the details about how long the eggs are incubated or how the young birds are cared for. But we do know that the parents add fresh green leaves to the nest throughout the time the young birds are growing.
Living Close Together
Grasshopper buzzards can live quite close to each other. In good habitats, you might find as many as 3.3 nests in one square kilometer (about 0.4 square miles). Nests can be less than 100 meters (328 feet) apart. Their home ranges often overlap, and the birds regularly fly over their neighbors' areas to find food.
