New Guinea Eagle

The New Guinea eagle is a fairly large eagle and very large raptor. Though the sexes are similar, the female is slightly larger than the male, with a range up to a 34% size difference. In total length, adults range from 75 to 90 cm (30 to 35 in). The relatively short but broad wingspan, as expected in forest-dwelling raptors, is 121 to 157 cm (4 ft 0 in to 5 ft 2 in). The body mass widely reported is relatively light for so large a raptor at 1.6 to 2.4 kg (3.5 to 5.3 lb). This may be due in no small part to its extremely long tail, which measures 384 to 394 mm (15.1 to 15.5 in) in males and 410 to 435 mm (16.1 to 17.1 in) in females. The weights reported according to some authors probably underrepresent their size, especially those of full-grown females, and their body size range based on linear dimensions (the weighed birds could have been all smaller males). This species also possesses an exceptional long tarsus, which may rival the Philippine eagle, which weighs about three times more than the Papuan eagle, as the longest of all living eagles at 123 to 145 mm (4.8 to 5.7 in). Meanwhile, the wing chord measures 368 to 442 mm (14.5 to 17.4 in) in males and 450 to 494 mm (17.7 to 19.4 in). A single male had a culmen length of 48 mm (1.9 in). At all ages, Papuan eagles are a greyish brown raptor with a creamy-coloured underside. …

The Papuan eagle is endemic to New Guinea. It has been seen in almost every part of the island, from peninsular Indonesian Papua in the west to throughout the nation of Papua New Guinea in the east. The main native habitat inhabited by Papuan eagles are undisturbed tropical rainforests. However, they will also utilize gallery forests, monsoon scrub forest and dry woodland. The species has even been reported to sometimes turn up in forest edge and relatively open areas such as gardens, but more extensive research that this is extraordinarily rare if it does even occur. They can live at several elevations from sea level up to regularly 2,000 m (6,600 ft), but occasionally have reported at elevations ranging from 3,200 to 3,700 m (10,500 to 12,100 ft). At times, it has been considered a bird that prefers steeper sloped or ridged parts of the forest.

The Papuan eagle is an elusive forest dweller. Despite old claims that it soars, even claims that it does so frequently, evidence indicates it never engages in soaring flight. Typically, this species is known to perch inconspicuously in thick canopy and can be fairly difficult to see as it often slips away quietly, seemingly to avoid human detection. Due to its occasional tendency to vocalize at night, large eyes, and almost owl-like facial area, this species has at times been hypothesized to be an occasional nocturnal hunter, but the Papuan eagle has never been proven to hunt by night and is now thought to be a diurnal hunter like other eagles. The Papuan eagle is a powerful hunter that uses the still or perch hunting style typical of many forest raptors, gliding from often routine perch sites inconspicuously as possible within the forest. Flights between hunting perches are up to 1,500 m (4,900 ft) but usually as little as 50 to 60 m (160 to 200 ft). This raptor is said to detect terrestrial prey partially through sound by listening for movement in the undergrowth, and while hunting, often bobs its head side to side, and turns it at peculiar angles, seeming to be getting a fix on the prey's location before dropping down. …