Melierax metabates
The Dark Chanting Goshawk (Melierax metabates) is a medium-sized raptor native to sub-Saharan Africa, revered for its distinctive vocalizations and striking appearance. Adults are characterized by an elegant slate-grey plumage across the head, back, and upper breast, contrasting with a pure white rump and finely barred underparts. Its average length ranges from 38 to 51 cm, with a wingspan of 75 to 105 cm and a weight typically between 510 and 850 grams. Key field marks include its prominent ...
This adaptable raptor primarily inhabits dry, open woodlands, acacia savannas, and thorny scrubland, often at low to moderate elevations.
Their diet mainly consists of large insects (especially locusts and grasshoppers), lizards, snakes, small mammals (rodents), and occasionally small birds, predominantly hunted on the ground.
Dark Chanting Goshawks are diurnal predators, frequently observed perching conspicuously on prominent trees, power poles, or rocks, surveying their surroundings. They employ a 'sit-and-wait' foraging strategy, but are equally adept at walking or running on the ground to pursue prey, a distinctive...
The Dark Chanting Goshawk is widely distributed across sub-Saharan Africa, occupying a broad band from Mauritania, Senegal, and Gambia in the west, eastward through the Sahel region to Eritrea and Ethiopia, and southwards through East Africa to Angola, northern Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe, and no...
Least Concern
- The Dark Chanting Goshawk gets its 'chanting' name from its distinctive, melodious, and flute-like vocalizations, which can carry over long distances. - Unlike many raptors that primarily hunt from the air, this species frequently hunts by walking or running on the ground, using its long legs t...