Hawk Eagles are one of my favourites – they’re a beautiful, intelligent bird which use highly developed co-operative techniques to catch their prey. Together with their mate, they hunt ground birds, such as Guinea Fowl and Francolin, which make up the majority of their prey.
We watched as a pair of African Hawk Eagles worked together to catch a Guinea Fowl. The female flew round in front of the birds, in an intentionally slow and visible stoop, which caused immediate panic on the ground. Amongst the confusion, the male streaked in from behind and pinned a Guinea fowl to the ground. It was all over in an instant.
The pair began to feed on their kill, but our presence made them nervous and they carried the carcass away to a nearby fallen tree. While the female fed, the male stood guard over her and posed for some photos.
