CreatureData

Eastern imperial eagle

Aquila heliaca Savigny, 1809

VUVulnerablebirds of prey

The eastern imperial eagle (Aquila heliaca) is a species in the family Accipitridae, order Accipitriformes. Recorded adults weigh 2.59 kg to 3.85 kg and live up to 56 years. Its IUCN Red List status is Vulnerable.

Eastern imperial eagle (Aquila heliaca)
Photo: Sumeet Moghe · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Quick facts about the eastern imperial eagle

Weight
2.59 kg – 3.85 kgsrc for Weight
Length
Not recorded
Wingspan
1.8 m – 2.15 msrc for Wingspan
Lifespan
56 yearssrc for Lifespan
Diet
Carnivoresrc for Diet
Main food
Not recorded
Habitat
woodlandsrc for Habitat
Egg incubation
43 dayssrc for Egg incubation
Young per litter or clutch
2.4 – 2.5src for Young per litter or clutch
Age at maturity
4.48 yearssrc for Age at maturity
Litters or clutches a year
1src for Litters or clutches a year
Lifestyle
Generalistsrc for Lifestyle
Migration
Migratorysrc for Migration
Conservation status
Vulnerable (IUCN)src for Conservation status
Countries on record
Not recorded

How big is the eastern imperial eagle?

EASTERN IMPERIAL EAGLE · WINGSPAN 2.15 MADULT HUMAN · HEIGHT 1.7 M
At 2.15 m, the recorded maximum wingspan of the eastern imperial eagle is about 1.3 times the height of an adult human (1.7 m, a fixed reference used for scale).

Where does the eastern imperial eagle live?

Not recorded

What is the eastern imperial eagle?

Quoted from WikipediaCC BY-SA 4.0

The eastern imperial eagle (Aquila heliaca) is a large bird of prey that breeds in southeastern Europe and extensively through West and Central Asia. Most populations are migratory and winter in northeastern Africa, the Middle East and South and East Asia. Like all eagles, the eastern imperial eagle is a member of the family Accipitridae. Furthermore, its feathered legs mark it as a member of the subfamily Aquilinae. It is a large, dark-colored eagle, with a resemblance to other members of the genus Aquila, but it is usually the darkest species in its range. It is an opportunistic predator that mostly selects smallish mammals as prey but also a fairly large proportion of birds, reptile and other prey types, including carrion. Compared to other Aquila eagles, it has a strong preference for the interface of tall woods with plains and other open, relatively flat habitats, including the wooded mosaics of the steppe. Normally, nests are located in large, mature trees and the parents raise around one or two fledglings. The global population is small and declining due to persecution, loss of habitat and prey. It has therefore been IUCN Red Listed as Vulnerable since 1994.

From the Wikipedia article “Eastern imperial eagle” (en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Eastern_imperial_eagle&oldid=1384021710), 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 eastern imperial eagle endangered?

The eastern imperial eagle is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List: it faces a high risk of extinction in the wild.

  1. LCLeast Concern
  2. NTNear Threatened
  3. VUVulnerable
  4. ENEndangered
  5. CRCritically Endangered
  6. EWExtinct in the Wild
  7. EXExtinct

Category via Wikidata (CC0). Find the full assessment on the IUCN Red List. See all Vulnerable species.

How is the eastern imperial eagle classified?

  1. kingdomAnimalia
  2. phylumChordata
  3. classAves
  4. orderAccipitriformes
  5. familyAccipitridae
  6. genusAquila
  7. SpeciesAquila heliaca Savigny, 1809

Synonyms Aquila heliaca heliaca, Aquila heliaca ricketti, Aquila heliaca rivketti

Other names and names in other languages (84)
  • Asian imperial eagleEnglish
  • Imperial eagleEnglish
  • عقاب ملكيةArabic
  • ملك العقبانArabic
  • عقاب ملكي شرقيArabic
  • águila imperialAsturian
  • Məzar qartalıAzerbaijani
  • Арол-магільнікBelarusian
  • Арол-магiльнiкBelarusian
  • Царски орелBulgarian
  • Кръстат орелBulgarian
  • Erer skoazioù gwennBreton
  • Àguila cridaneraCatalan
  • àguila imperial orientalCatalan
  • Патша ӑмӑрткайӑкӗChuvash
  • orel královskýCzech
  • eryr ymerodrolWelsh
  • KejserørnDanish
  • KaiseradlerGerman
  • Kaiseradler (der richtige deutsche Artname)German
  • Östlicher KaiseradlerGerman
  • ΒασιλαετόςGreek
  • Ανατολικός ΒασιλαετόςGreek
  • (Ανατολικός) ΒασιλαετόςGreek
  • imperia agloEsperanto
  • Aguila ImperialSpanish
  • Aguila Imperial OrientalSpanish
  • Águila imperial orientalSpanish
  • kääpakotkasEstonian
  • عقاب شاهیPersian
  • keisarikotkaFinnish
  • Aigle impérialFrench
  • Iolar impiriúilIrish
  • Aguia imperialGalician
  • Urley impiroilManx
  • עיט שמשHebrew
  • parlagi sasHungarian
  • Արծիվ բլրայինArmenian
  • Բլրային արծիվ (գերեզմանարծիվ)Armenian
  • GammörnIcelandic
  • Aquila imperialeItalian
  • Aquila imperiale orientaleItalian
  • カタシロワシJapanese
  • ბეგობის არწივიGeorgian
  • Хара хушkjn
  • ҚарақұсKazakh
  • 흰죽지수리Korean
  • Чуьлд лакьLezghian
  • чуьлд лаькьLezghian
  • karališkasis erelisLithuanian
  • karaliskais ērglisLatvian
  • Крстат царски орелMacedonian
  • രാജാപ്പരുന്ത്Malayalam
  • Хан бургэдMongolian
  • शाही गरुडMarathi
  • Burung Lang Tengkuk KuningMalay
  • KeizerarendDutch
  • keisarørnNorwegian Nynorsk
  • keiserørnNorwegian
  • orzeł cesarskiPolish
  • águia-imperial-orientalPortuguese
  • Acvilă de câmpRomanian
  • Орел-могильникRussian
  • Орёл-могильникRussian
  • KeaisárgoaskinNorthern Sami
  • orol kráľovskýSlovak
  • kraljevi orelSlovenian
  • Shqiponja perandorakeAlbanian
  • орао крсташSerbian
  • Orao krstašSerbian
  • Orao krstaš / Орао крсташSerbian
  • kejsarörnSwedish
  • Tai Kisogo-dhahabuSwahili
  • கீழை வல்கழுகுTamil
  • นกอินทรีหัวไหล่ขาวThai
  • Şah KartalTurkish
  • İmparator KartalıTurkish
  • Şah kartalıTurkish
  • Базырык эзириTuvinian
  • МогильникUkrainian
  • могильник східнийUkrainian
  • Đại bàng đầu nâuVietnamese
  • 白肩雕Chinese
  • 白肩鵰Chinese

Catalogue of LifeWikipediaiNaturalistTAXREFWikidataWoRMSIUCN Red List

Relatives of the eastern imperial eagle

Other species in the same genus Aquila.

Wedgie

Aquila audax

AccipitridaeNo free photo yet

CompareEastern imperial eagle vs Golden eagleEastern imperial eagle vs Steppe eagleEastern imperial eagle vs Bonelli's eagleEastern imperial eagle vs Tawny eagle

Common questions

Answered only where our data holds the answer.

How big is the eastern imperial eagle?

An adult eastern imperial eagle weighs 2.59 kg – 3.85 kg and has a wingspan of 1.8 m – 2.15 m, according to values recorded on Wikidata.

Is the eastern imperial eagle endangered?

The eastern imperial eagle is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red List, meaning it faces a high risk of extinction in the wild.

How long does the eastern imperial eagle live?

The eastern imperial eagle has a recorded lifespan of 56 years.

What kind of animal is the eastern imperial eagle?

The eastern imperial eagle (Aquila heliaca) 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.

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APA

CreatureData. (2026). Eastern imperial eagle (Aquila heliaca). Retrieved from https://creaturedata.com/animals/eastern-imperial-eagle

MLA

“Eastern imperial eagle (Aquila heliaca).” CreatureData, 2026, https://creaturedata.com/animals/eastern-imperial-eagle.

BibTeX
@misc{eastern_imperial_eagle_2026,
  title = {Eastern imperial eagle (Aquila heliaca)},
  author = {{CreatureData}},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://creaturedata.com/animals/eastern-imperial-eagle},
  note = {Data as of 2026-11-11}
}