Scientific Name: Nisaetus cirrhatus
Malay Name: Helang-Hindik Biasa
Chinese Name: 凤头鹰雕
Resident from the Indian subcontinent through Sundaic southeast Asia, as well as some islands in the Philippines.
Polytypic. Subspecies are: limnaeetus, cirrhatus, ceylanensis, andamanensis, vanheurni.
Local Subspecies: limnaeetus
Size: 61-75 cm
Comes in a dark and pale morph. The latter has dark streaks on its underparts with strongly marked underwings. Juvenile dark morphs are typically similar to adults, while juvenile pale morphs can be told apart by their very plain white underparts. Often confused with Crested Honey Buzzard, from which it can be told apart by its proportionally bigger head, rounder wings, shorter tail and feathered tarsus (if visible).
Behaviour/Ecology: Frequently heard in various wooded area across Singapore, but beware as some of the sounds heard might turn out to be vocal mimicry by the Greater Racket-tailed Drongo. Previously rare in Singapore but population size has increased tremendously.
Local Status: Uncommon resident
Conservation Status: Least Concern (BirdLife International 2020)
Location: Found across many wooded area across Singapore. Even able to tolerate degraded habitat such as regenerating forest patches in Tuas as long as tall trees (such as Albizia) are available for nesting.
Conservation Status: IUCN Red List Page ↗
Photos: Oriental Bird Images ↗
Sound Recordings: xeno-canto Link ↗
Wikipedia Entry: Wikipedia Link ↗
eBird Species page: eBird (Changeable Hawk-Eagle) ↗
BirdLife International. (2020). Nisaetus cirrhatus. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2020. https://dx.doi.org/10.2305/IUCN.UK.2020-3.RLTS.T22732090A181767197.en. Accessed on 19 December 2021
Robson, C. (2014). Field guide to the birds of South-East Asia (Second Edition). Bloomsbury Publishing, London.