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Black-breasted Buzzard
(Hamirostra melanosternon)
: "Black-breasted Kite"
Aboriginal name(s): "koodap" (WA)
Size: 50-60 cm; wing span 1.4-1.55 m
Weight: 1.2 kg (male), 1.4 kg (female); averages
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Physical description |
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Click here for a physical description
Black-breasted Buzzards are medium-sized raptors with a dark-brown
overall appearance. Only the nape of the neck, the vent, and the
edges of the upperwing feathers are light-brown. When seen from
underneath, the most conspicuous feature are the translucent wing
panels at the base of the primaries, whose tips are black.
Bill, legs and feet are grey.
Juvenile
Black-breasted Buzzards are rufous-brown, rather than dark-brown,
with light-grey secondary flight feathers.
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Taxonomy, classification |
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See Black-breasted
Buzzard at Wikipedia .
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Range, habitat, finding this species |
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Click here for information on habitat
and range
The overall distribution of this species can be assessed, and
specific locations where birds have been spotted can be found,
based on individual sighting reports submitted by birdwatchers to
ebird.org
.
The global distribution of the Black-breasted Buzzard is available
HERE
.
NB:
Reports on ebird of birds submitted by birdwatchers from
the Australian Outback tend to be clustered along roads
and public areas such as camp grounds; in such cases their
distribution is not a good representation of the overall
distribution of the species.
Black-breasted Buzzards are endemic to Australia. They can be found
mainly in the tropical North
of Australia and in the semi-arid interior to the North of about
Lake Eyre, with a boundary north-westward towards Uluru, continuing
to somewhere to the South of Broome, WA, and north-eastward towards St.
George in southern QLD. Other than that, there are only a few
patches where they have been found in South-East Australia and
along the WA West coast, from about Geraldton to Exmouth and a
few hundred km inland from that coastal stretch.
In the interior of the continent Black-breasted Buzzards have a
preference for scrubland.
In the North they are found primarily in riparian and tropical
woodland.
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Sightings |
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Click here for sighting information
A Black-breasted Buzzard was first spotted by us in the wetlands
of Capricorn Resort, Yeppoon, in July 2009.
Special access to the wetlands kindly granted by the owners of
Capricorn Resort is most gratefully acknowledged.
A single Black-breasted Buzzard was spotted on the Paroo River,
about 50 km North of Wanaaring, NSW, in September 2012.
B. Hensen reports spotting Black-breasted Buzzards at Bowra, QLD,
in October 2012.
H. Mouritsen reports spotting a Black-breasted Buzzard between
Pine Creek and Darwin, NT, in October 2015.
M. Mearns spotted a Black-breasted Buzzard at Innamincka NP,
SA, in July 2006.
B. Hensen reports spotting Black-breasted Buzzards in several
locations in the Top End of the NT, where they are more common
inland than near the coastline.
M. Eaton reports finding a Black-breasted Buzzard at the
Musgrave Roadhouse, Cape York peninsula, QLD, in August 2019.
Another was found at Thargomindah, QLD, in June 2020.
M. Eaton also found a Black-breasted Buzzard at Timber Creek,
NT, in July 2020.
P. Brown found a Black-breasted Buzzard at the Oolloo Road crossing
of the Daly River, NT, in August 2021.
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Photos |
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ADULT |
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Lateral view of a Black-breasted Buzzard
(photo courtesy of M. Eaton)
[Timber Creek, NT, July 2020]
Close-up near-lateral/ventral view of a soaring Black-breasted Buzzard
(photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[Oolloo Road crossing, Daly River, NT, August 2021]
Near-lateral/ventral view of a soaring Black-breasted Buzzard;
note the characteristic prominent, semi-translucent white wing panels
[Near Wanaaring, NSW, September 2012]
Lateral/ventral view of a soaring Black-breasted Buzzard
[Near Wanaaring, NSW, September 2012]
Lateral/ventral view of a soaring Black-breasted Buzzard
(photo courtesy of P. Brown)
[Oolloo Road crossing, Daly River, NT, August 2021]
Lateral/ventral view of a Black-breasted Buzzard looking down
on the observer (photo courtesy of M. Mearns)
[Innamincka NP, SA, July 2006]
Distant lateral/ventral view of a Black-breasted Buzzard in flight
(photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Leaning Tree Lagoon, Adelaide River floodplain, NT, November 2018]
Dorsal/ventral view of a Black-breasted Buzzard in flight
[Near Wanaaring, NSW, September 2012]
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IMMATURE/JUVENILE |
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Near-lateral view of a juvenile Black-breasted Buzzard
(photo courtesy of B. Hensen)
[Bowra, QLD, October 2012]
Social behaviour: Territorial |
Mobility: Dispersive |
Elementary unit: Solitary/pair |
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Food, Diet |
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The Black-breasted Buzzard is known
for a special skill - it can use a rock to crack open an
Emu
egg, as shown in this photo sequence (of a bird in captivity).
All photos have kindly been contributed by A. Ross-Taylor.
Black-breasted Buzzard presented with the challenge of opening an
Emu egg, looking
around for a suitable tool
(photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
Black-breasted Buzzard with a rock as its tool to crack open an
Emu egg
(photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
Black-breasted Buzzard with a rock as its tool to crack open an
Emu egg
(photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
Upward acceleration...
(photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
... and hit the target - dinner time!
(photo courtesy of A. Ross-Taylor)
These pages are largely based on our own observations and those of our
contributors.
The structure of these bird pages is explained HERE. For more salient facts on any bird species
please refer to a field guide.