THE HAAST EAGLE
BY DANIEL
Did you know the haast eagle had other names
Harpagornis, New Zealand Eagle, Giant Eagle, Pouakai, Hokioi.
Taxonomy
Kingdom:Animalia.
Phylum:Chordata.
Class:Aves.
Order:Falconiformes.
Family:Accipitridae.
Genera:Harpagornis.
Species:moorei.
Subspecies:none
Speed
The Haast Eagle can go 60-80 kilometers an hour.
How became extinct
Early human settlers in New Zealand (the Māori arrived around the year 1280) preyed heavily on large flightless birds, including all moa species, eventually hunting them to extinction. The loss of its natural prey caused the Haast's eagle to become extinct as well around 1400,when the last of its natural food sources were depleted.(starved to death.)And settlers killed them as well.
2 facts
- It can kill a human.
- Only lived in the south island.
HABITAT
The haast eagle live in a rimu tree waiting for a moa to walk by.The haast eagle is mainly found in the Central Otago area.
Shape of beak
The haast eagle had a hooked beak to rip into the fleach of it’s prey.
Body size shape and weight
It’s powerful legs can knock you out!It’s wingspan is 3ms to help it fly.The haast eagle had a very solid body,and it is thought it was immensely strong bird.The females weighed 11-13 Kgs,and the males were smaller and weighed 10-11 Kgs.
Shape of feat and what are they used for.
The longest claws were 9cms long to help it rip into the flesh.THAT IS AS LONG AS A LIONS CLAWS.
Feathers,plumage,size of wings,tail.
The haast eagle has 1 wing is 1 and a half meters and the tail is at least 1 meter.Feathers:Most experts agreed that it is most likely to have been a more sombre brown or brownish-grey similar to the other very large forest eagles found around the globe today.
Where are they found
They are found in the south island.In forest areas and in the botom of mounteans.
Eyes/vision
The haast eagle is a diurnal time bird (that means it feeds in the daytime).The haast eagles vision is very strong.
The haast eagles call
We do not know what the real call was like but we can predict what it sounded like.
Food
The haast eagle feeds on the moa,flightless Baptornis, Weka, Takahe, flightless geese and ducks. birds,fish and humans and etc.
Behaviour
Haast's eagles preyed on large, flightless bird species,including the moa, which was up to fifteen times the weight of the eagle,and fish. It is estimated to have attacked at speeds up to 80 km/h (50 mph), often seizing its prey with the of one foot and killing with a blow to the head or neck with the other. Its size and weight indicate a bodily striking force equivalent to a cinder block falling from the top of an eight-story building.Its large beak also could be used to rip into the internal organs of its prey and death then would have been caused by blood loss. In the absence of other large predators or scavengers, a Haast's eagle easily could have monopolised a single large kill over a number of days.
Nest
The birds would mate for life and the pair would have had a territory of several hundred square km. Its presumed that they built nests, or eyries, in trees where the females would lay about two clutches of eggs. She would then incubate them for about 40 days, sometimes the male would incubate them too.Once the egg hatched the baby eagle was completely defenseless and relied on its mother and father for food. The first baby eagle to hatch would have been likely to have a hunting advantage over the hatchlings that hatch later because it would be bigger faster and stronger than the others.
Strange habits
It is large enough to kill a human. Indeed the Haast eagle had talons comparable to a tiger’s and was capable of killing a human.
How long do they incubate
None knows because the haast eagle protects the nest.
How long is it till chicks can fly
None knows how long because the haast eagle protects the nest from predators.
Do both parents go and feed or 1 go and feeds the chicks
Both do.
Threats
none.
Modern day predators
humans.
How have humans affected your birds habitat.
Getting rid of forest and killing them.
Current population
0.
By Daniel
