If you’ve ever seen a Goshawk, you’ll know what wonderful and majestic birds that they are. They can be found all over the world, from the regal British Goshawk to the scrappy American Goshawk.
These can be found all over the world and they come in various shapes and sizes.
But what about the Gabar goshawk? Well, this creature really is beautiful, coming in a slate grey color with black barbs on the belly, you can spot this a mile away.
It has wonderful yellow eyes and razor sharp claws that will really help you when it comes to spotting it.
These creatures are also wonderful killing machines, able to use their retinas to spot prey from over a mile away. They also have razor sharp talons and a hooked beak that will really help them to catch prey and keep them from escaping in the air.
The beak will also help them to strip their flesh off the bone.
So where can you find this amazing animal? What is the difference between the Gabar Goshawk and other birds of prey? What calls and sounds do they have? What adaptations have they developed to make them good hunters?
How do they look after their chicks? Are they hostile towards humans? What is the difference between the male and the female?
Well, if you want the answers to all these avian questions and more, then we would suggest that you keep reading. Once you start reading about this creature, you simply won’t be able to stop.
This animal has everything that it needs to live for years and thrive in nature right from day one.
Appearance
This bird has one of the most unique appearances of any bird that we’ve ever seen, and we’ve seen a lot in our research! This has a silvery-grey color that could almost be described as having a bluish tint.
It also has black bars across its chest, which will not really be visible when it is flying high in the air.
This has grey upper parts with a white rump. Around the eyes it is very dark, with red pupils and red claws that make it one of the most aesthetically pleasing birds. They have red ceres, with the claws being more of a yellow color.
Male Vs Female
As with most birds of prey, the female is a lot larger than the male, with the latter weighing anywhere between 90 – 173 kg and the former weighing in at around 167 – 240 kg.
This is because the female is much involved in raising the chicks, which includes building a nest and foraging for food.
Are They Aggressive?
These animals are not aggressive to human beings. They will only really attack when they are cornered and even then, they will always prefer to find an exit.
They have been known to defend themselves against dogs if they are trapped on the ground through injury or sickness. However, this bird will not attack unprompted.
What Adaptations Do They Have?
This goshawk has developed long tail feathers that it uses to float on the air looking for prey. Having the ability to fly around the islands where it lives will be very important for finding food, both for itself and its chicks.
These birds have grey plumage, which also makes them practically invisible against a grey and blue sky. This is one of the reasons why this creature has become so good at hunting.
Breeding/reproduction Behaviour
The goshawk nest is usually built by the female out of sticks that are lying around the area. They usually make their nests in a thorny tree, which will offer some more protection against predators when the bird is out foraging for food.
The female godhawk will often lay around 2 – 3 eggs, which is quite a small clutch for a bird of prey. The breeding season will usually start in June and conclude around September or mid-October.
The female will brood over the eggs for an incubation period of around 38 days.
Their Calls/Sounds
This bird has a shrill call that it will generally use very seldom outside of the mating season. You can be sure that the male will call to the female when it is trying to mate and the female will generally cry when the nest is being attacked.
Juveniles of this species will generally only really cry when they want food. This will be a more high-pitched version of the traditional bird call, which will grow less and deepen as it is able to look for its own food.
What Do They Eat? (Diet)
This goshawk will mainly feed on thrushes in the area, although there have been reported sightings of it eating mammals and small insects. This animal is one of the best at catching other birds in flight.
Where Do They Live? (Habitat)
This creature usually lived in savannahs and semi-arid scrub that is covered with bare trees. This is because it likes to perch in the branches and wait for food. You can also find this bird near a water supply.
It prefers humid and dry areas, although it will need water occasionally.
What Are Their Nesting Habits?
This goshawk will usually make their nest in a thorn bush to keep their chicks safe from other predators such as snakes and thrushes that like to prey on the unattended eggs. This nest is often lined with worms, moss and grass so that the chicks will not fall out.
These nests are a lot smaller than some other birds of prey, as the Gabar goshawk is often a lot smaller in size.
How long Do They Live? (Lifespan)
Some wild goshawks observed in nature have been known to live up to 11 years old, which is now considered the average lifespan. However, in captivity, some goshawks have been known to live up to 27 years.
What Predators Do They Have?
This bird of prey has no natural predators, although sometimes it will be attacked by a wild or tame dog if it goes too near the urban city centers. However, this occurrence is rare.
The main predator for these species are humans, which often destroy territory and have been known to poach these animals.
What Are Their Feathers Like?
These birds have grey-blue feathers, which really helps them to blend into the sky when they are flying. The feathers are very flat against the body, which also helps them to fly faster. This smaller bird has one of the quickest flight patterns and speeds in the wild.
What Does Their Poop Look Like?
This bird, like a lot of others of its type, produces long and stringy white poop that can often be seen splattered around the lower branches and trunk of the thorn bushes that it nests in.
Some of these birds have been known to produce smaller brown pellets, although this will only be if they have a poor diet.
Do They Migrate?
These birds do tend to move towards warmer climates in the winter, often staying near a source of water. This bird will start to migrate around mid-October after it has finished breeding and raising its chicks.
You can be sure that this bird has plenty of fat stored in its body for the long winter ahead.
Conservation Status
This animal is considered to have ‘least concern’, which means that it is not under great threat from extinction. However, there are numerous threats to this animal’s wellbeing, the main one being humans.
This species has declined in recent years because of human encroachment upon their territory. This is due to large areas of forest being cut down for the purposes of building private property.
However, luckily for this animal, they often nest in quite uninhabitable dry areas which are of no interest to human beings.
Fun Facts
This goshawk will often flush it’s prey out from a hiding place by flying at it very fast. It will usually hunt from a perch that is located near its nest.
The baby goshawk will become fully independent within one month of being born. This bird will also attack the nests of other birds, hoping to snatch the chicks out of the nests.
These birds often live on tree-lined water courses, although they can occasionally be seen venturing into cities, mostly to scavenge for food.
The female is traditionally larger than the male due to the fact that they can more successfully hunt for food and protect the chicks.
This species practices polygamous relationships, with the male often fathering more than one families by different females.
