Short-toed Eagle
Circaetus gallicus
- KingdomAnimalia (Animals)
- PhylumChordata (Chordates)
- ClassAves (Birds)
- OrderAccipitriformes (Hawks, Eagles, Kites, and Allies)
- FamilyAccipitridae (Hawks, Eagles, and Kites)
- GenusCircaetus (Snake-Eagles)
- SpeciesCircaetus gallicus (Short-toed Eagle)
About the Short-toed Eagle
The short-toed snake eagle (Circaetus gallicus), also known as the short-toed eagle, is a medium-sized bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as kites, buzzards and harriers. The genus name Circaetus is from the Ancient Greek kirkos, a type of hawk, and aetos, "eagle". The specific gallicus means "of Gallia".
The short-toed snake eagle was formally described in 1788 by the German naturalist Johann Friedrich Gmelin in his revised and expanded edition of Carl Linnaeus's Systema Naturae. He placed it with the falcons, eagles and their relatives in the genus Falco and coined the binomial name Falco gallicus. Gmelin based his description on the "Jean le Blanc" that had been described by the English ornithologist John Latham and the French ornithologists Mathurin Jacques Brisson and the Comte de Buffon. The short-toed snake eagle is now placed in the genus Circaetus that was introduced in 1816 by the French ornithologist Louis Pierre Vieillot. The genus name is from the Ancient Greek kirkos, a type of hawk, and aetos, "eagle". The specific epithet gallicus is Latin for "Gaul" ie France.
Two subspecies are recognised: C... Wikipedia →
Closest Relatives at Vanoise National Park
Golden Eagle
Aquila chrysaetos
Bearded Vulture
Gypaetus barbatus
Common Buzzard
Buteo buteo
Griffon Vulture
Gyps fulvus
Eurasian Sparrowhawk
Accipiter nisus
Black Kite
Milvus migrans
White-tailed Eagle
Haliaeetus albicilla
European Honey-buzzard
Pernis apivorus
Cinereous Vulture
Aegypius monachus
Red Kite
Milvus milvus
Egyptian Vulture
Neophron percnopterus
Western Marsh-Harrier
Circus aeruginosus
Global Distribution
Where this species is recorded worldwide. Restricted to human observations from 2019 onwards — the same kind of record and the same period the probabilities on this page are built from, so collar-tracking studies, camera-trap arrays and museum specimens are excluded. Around Santa Rosa that removes 5,924 GPS fixes from a handful of tagged jaguars.
where this species is recorded (GBIF density — it tracks where observers go, not how likely a sighting is) · parks where it occurs — tap a pin for the sighting probability there
Parks Where Found
Quick answers
What are the chances of seeing a Short-toed Eagle in Vanoise National Park?
About 10% of wildlife watchers report a Short-toed Eagle sighting in Vanoise National Park, based on 73 verified sightings from GBIF citizen-science data.
When is the best time to see Short-toed Eagle in Vanoise National Park?
August has the highest sighting rate for Short-toed Eagle in Vanoise National Park in our monthly data.