African harrier-hawk
Polyboroides typus A. Smith, 1829
The African harrier-hawk (Polyboroides typus) is a species in the family Accipitridae, order Accipitriformes. Recorded adults weigh 564 g to 711 g. Its IUCN Red List status is Least Concern.
Quick facts about the African harrier-hawk
- Weight
- 564 g – 711 gsrc for Weight
- Length
- Not recorded
- Lifespan
- Not recorded
- Diet
- Carnivoresrc for Diet
- Main food
- Not recorded
- Habitat
- forestsrc for Habitat
- Egg incubation
- 35.5 dayssrc for Egg incubation
- Young per litter or clutch
- 2src for Young per litter or clutch
- Age at maturity
- 2.98 yearssrc for Age at maturity
- Litters or clutches a year
- 1src for Litters or clutches a year
- Lifestyle
- Perchingsrc for Lifestyle
- Migration
- Sedentarysrc for Migration
- Conservation status
- Least Concern (IUCN)src for Conservation status
- Countries on record
- Not recorded
Photos of the African harrier-hawk
Only freely licensed photos are shown. Each carries its creator and licence.
Where does the African harrier-hawk live?
Not recorded
What is the African harrier-hawk?
The African harrier-hawk, harrier hawk or gymnogene (Polyboroides typus) is a bird of prey. It is about 60–66 centimetres (24–26 in) in length. It breeds in most of Africa south of the Sahara. The only other member of the genus is the allopatric Madagascar harrier-hawk (Polyboroides radiatus).
From the Wikipedia article “African harrier-hawk” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=African_harrier-hawk&oldid=1382217759), by Wikipedia contributors, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0). This block is kept separate from our own text.
Is the African harrier-hawk endangered?
The African harrier-hawk is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List: it is not currently at risk of extinction.
- LCLeast Concern
- NTNear Threatened
- VUVulnerable
- ENEndangered
- CRCritically Endangered
- EWExtinct in the Wild
- EXExtinct
Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Least Concern species. What the categories mean.
How is the African harrier-hawk classified?
- kingdomAnimalia
- phylumChordata
- classAves
- orderAccipitriformes
- familyAccipitridae
- genusPolyboroides
- SpeciesPolyboroides typus A. Smith, 1829
Synonyms Gymnogenys capensis, Gymnogenys malzacii, Gymnogenys typicus, Polyboroides typicus
Other names and names in other languages (46)
- AFHHEnglish
- Banded harrier-hawkEnglish
- GymnogeneEnglish
- GymnogeneEnglish
- KaalwangvalkAfrikaans
- صقر صياد أفريقيArabic
- arpella d'antifaç africanaCatalan
- jestřábec pochopovitýCzech
- jestřábovec pochopovitýCzech
- boda ystwythWelsh
- Afrikansk KlatrehøgDanish
- HöhlenweihGerman
- Afrikanischer SchlangensperberGerman
- HöhlenweiheGerman
- afrika cirkuakcipitroEsperanto
- Aguilucho africanoSpanish
- Aguilucho caricalvo comúnSpanish
- aafrika maskkullEstonian
- rosvohaukkaFinnish
- Gymnogène d'AfriqueFrench
- Gymnogène d’AfriqueFrench
- Cromán AfracachIrish
- eja jastrebačaCroatian
- afrikai odúhéjaHungarian
- Gimnogene africanoItalian
- Sparviero serpentario africanoItalian
- 沢鵟鷹Japanese
- チュウヒダカJapanese
- 아프리카새매Korean
- afrikinis linginis vanagasLithuanian
- KaalkopkiekendiefDutch
- klatrehaukNorwegian
- owadożer palmowyPolish
- gimnogene-pequenoPortuguese
- gavião-secretário-africanoPortuguese
- Secretário-pequenoPortuguese
- Африканский лунёвый ястребRussian
- kutraňa dutinárkaSlovak
- Afrički ejoliki jastrebSerbian
- afrikansk klätterhökSwedish
- Afrika DeliatmacasıTurkish
- seGootsaneTswana
- яструб-сивець африканськийUkrainian
- 獵鷹Chinese
- 非洲獵鷹Chinese
- 非洲鬣鹰Chinese
Relatives of the African harrier-hawk
Other species in the same genus Polyboroides.
Madagascar harrier-hawk
Polyboroides radiatus
Common questions
Answered only where our data holds the answer.
How big is the African harrier-hawk?
An adult African harrier-hawk weighs 564 g – 711 g, according to values recorded on Wikidata.
Is the African harrier-hawk endangered?
The African harrier-hawk is listed as Least Concern on the IUCN Red List, meaning it is not currently at risk of extinction.
What kind of animal is the African harrier-hawk?
The African harrier-hawk (Polyboroides typus) belongs to the family Accipitridae in the order Accipitriformes.
Sources and how to cite this page
Data as of 2026-11-11. How this page is put together.
- An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles · CC0 1.0 · E096-269
Myhrvold, N.P., Baldridge, E., Chan, B., Sivam, D., Freeman, D.L. & Ernest, S.K.M. (2015) An amniote life-history database to perform comparative analyses with birds, mammals, and reptiles. Ecology 96: 3109. https://doi.org/10.1890/15-0846R.1. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.3563457.v1 - AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds · CC BY 4.0 · v7
Tobias, J.A. et al. (2022) AVONET: morphological, ecological and geographical data for all birds. Ecology Letters 25: 581–597. https://doi.org/10.1111/ele.13898. Data: https://doi.org/10.6084/m9.figshare.16586228.v7 - Catalogue of Life eXtended Release · CC BY 4.0 · 2026-10-16 XR
Catalogue of Life (2026). Catalogue of Life eXtended Release, version 2026-10-16 XR. Catalogue of Life Foundation, Amsterdam, Netherlands. https://doi.org/10.48580/dgzlf - Wikimedia Commons · per file (CC0 / public domain / CC BY green, CC BY-SA amber, anything else not displayed) · 2026-11-11
Wikimedia Commons contributors. Wikimedia Commons. https://commons.wikimedia.org (each file credited to its author under its own licence). - Wikidata · CC0 1.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikidata contributors. Wikidata. https://www.wikidata.org (data retrieved via the Wikidata Query Service). - Wikipedia (English) · CC BY-SA 4.0 · 2026-11-11
Wikipedia contributors. Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. https://en.wikipedia.org (text under CC BY-SA 4.0; each block names its article and revision).
Embed a card for this animal on your own site
Copy this code. The card shows the photo with its credit, key facts and a link back to this page.
CreatureData. (2026). African harrier-hawk (Polyboroides typus). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/african-harrier-hawk
“African harrier-hawk (Polyboroides typus).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/african-harrier-hawk.
@misc{african_harrier_hawk_2026,
title = {African harrier-hawk (Polyboroides typus)},
author = {{CreatureData}},
year = {2026},
url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/african-harrier-hawk},
note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}