by Peter Gava | Susuwe Lodge Manager
The African Fish Eagle – An African Magnificence
African Fish Eagle
The fish eagle is the national symbol of many African countries and finds itself stuck on most of the historical flags. Why this loud bird is so favored is a mystery since the list of other birds of prey is endless. The answers are not definite nor conclusive especially if one has not seen this bird visually. Attempts to answer the question lie in the imagination and narration of one who is mesmerized by the huge eagle through a defined description of its features.
The fish Eagle is a large fish hunter with white feathers stretching from the shoulder to the head up to the nostril at the demarcation where the yellowish strong hooked black tipped bill ends, just slightly below the eye. Below the shoulder comes the brown/black feathers running all the way to the tip of the wings. The under parts constituting the belly and the breast are russet, while the upper back reveals the white V-shape which narrows to the centre of the back. The wing is sliced underneath into two colors representing the russet belly to the front and brown/ black at its back and this can be seen when the bird stretches its wings or in flight. The legs are yellow, with conspicuous scales while the black sharp talons tell the story of what they can do when the eagle is in action. The tail feathers are white, adding the surface area for the white color which is used to reflect heat from the blazing sun during long hours of patiently waiting for prey to avail the best chances for it to successfully charge and make a kill. It has black Eyes of an efficient skilled killer designed to pull images closer in binocular fashion that has made it a name through spotting slight movements of fish in the water. Combined with accurate judgment of distance the fish eagle rarely missed its target.
Knowing what the bird looks like and its potentialities as a hunter is not enough! Getting a story on what the African Fish Eagle did in one good August afternoon at Susuwe Island Lodge in the Bwabwata National Park will create the great appreciation and respect for the bird. Our guests on this particular game-drive were not really birding, but they loved birds and found pleasure in stopping and watching every little or big beautiful bird. We had seen from the little Grey backed warbler, rattling cisticola, plovers, doves spur fowl, ducks, up to vultures, stocks and many more from the more than 300 species of birds that can be seen in the area. This gave all the feeling of accomplishment- what a great day! While we were settling in for our sundowners at Little Serengeti, we picked up a little image of white up on the summit of a tree and suddenly fumbled for the binoculars. Some said it was a white egret, others said it was a heron,stork etc. While we were all still wondering what bird it was, the whole image shot out of the tree with great speed and hissed towards the River Kwando waters. In one swift movement the bird dipped its yellow legs with a loud splash into the water while opening its talons and emerged with a wriggling 900 grams Zambezi bream. What a striking moment for all of us! No one had a doubt that it was indeed the African Fish Eagle. What a beauty! We watched the bird gracefully flap its wings while ferrying its quarry further south until it perched again on another tree and started pecking on it steadily with its sharp bill. This was the moment of the day, and in all of us this was an experience not to forget. Yes we had seen a kill more so from such a majestic bird of prey. It was beauty and the bird and not the beast, adding to the splendors and surprises at Susuwe Island Lodge.
The beginning of the story quickly flowed back into mind and many questions were answered, that such extreme beauty of a bird was more than attractive. Who would not want to see such a wonder bird, and who on this earth would not want to have the Fish Eagle on their Logo or emblem of the country. The Fish Eagle lives by the Kwando River with the spirit of excellence as a predator among others and represents true African magnificence above beauty, both of which it obviously possesses without prejudice.
