With a
wingspan of up to 2.5
metres, the wedge tailed eagle, or
wedgie, is the largest
bird of prey in
Australia. It soars for up to 90 minutes at a time, reaching
altitudes that exceed 2
kilometres. While they are found all over Australia, they are more common in open
woodland areas with good
grassy ground cover.
Wedge tailed eagles usually spend the hours around sunrise and sunset viewing their territory from the treetops. The hunt in the morning, and for the rest of the day they either sit on exposed perches or circle in the air and, although they spend little time maintaining their territory, they will advertise their presence by flying at high altitudes and gliding along the boundaries of their range.
In earlier times, the wedge tailed eagle was considered to be a pest because of its reputation as a killer of lambs and sheep. People were encouraged to kill them, and it has been estimated that at one stage 30,000 wedge tailed eagles were destroyed in a year. The wedge tailed eagle is now protected by the National Parks and Wildlife Act, and although it is now illegal to kill, trap or poison them, a lot of farmers still shoot them for sport.
Adult wedge tailed eagles pair off for life. During the breeding season they preen each other, and they will attack unfamiliar wedge tailed eagles who might invade their territory. The eagles’ nest consists of a large platform of sticks in the fork of a tree. Both sexes repair the nest, and the male lines it daily with fresh leaves. He will also sit on the eggs to incubate them, relieving the female from this task. During the incubation period, and after the chicks have hatched, the male does all the hunting. His catch is shredded by the female and fed to the young. They're really kind of adorable. Certainly one of my favourite birds.
In a good season two chicks may be reared, but usually only the fittest survives while the younger chick starves to death. Sometimes the older and larger chick may kill its sibling. In drought-affected areas, wedge-tailed eagles may not breed at all for several years.
When hunting, the wedge tailed eagle bears down on its prey in a long, slanting swoop. They have been known to dive up to half a kilometre from a target before flying a few metres above the ground, surprising their prey. Nearly all prey is caught on open ground, with the successful eagle usually feeding on the spot. Carrion is also a favourite meal, and as many as 30 to 40 wedge-tailed eagles can be found feeding on one carcass. They are often attracted to the carcasses of kangaroos lying beside roads and, as a consequence, some wedge tailed eagles are killed by speeding vehicles.
Between 80 and 90 per cent of a wedge tailed eagle’s diet is made up of ground dwelling animals, including both mammals and reptiles. Rabbits, wallabies and small kangaroos form the main part of their diet, although they will also eat snakes, lizards, large birds, possums, foxes and feral cats.
Wedge tailed eagles will eat sheep, but they usually only attack weak, dying or dead animals. Research by the CSIRO has shown that sheep account for less than 9 per cent of the wedge tailed eagle’s diet, which has little effect on the domestic sheep industry. Most of the sheep meat in the eagle’s diet is from carcasses, dying sheep, or road fatalities on unfenced inland roads.
Source: moslty the NSW Parks and Wildlife Service