Wedge-tailed eagle

The wedge-tailed eagle (Aquila audax) is the largest bird of prey in the continent of Australia. It is also found in southern New Guinea to the north and is distributed as far south as the state of Tasmania. Adults of the species have long, broad wings, fully feathered legs, an unmistakable, wedge-shaped tail, an elongated upper mandible, a strong beak, and powerful feet. The wedge-tailed eagle is one of 12 species of large, predominantly dark-coloured booted eagles in the genus Aquila found worldwide. Genetic research clearly has indicated that the wedge-tailed eagle is fairly closely related to other, generally large members of the Aquila genus. A large, brown-to-black bird of prey, it has a maximum reported wingspan of 2.84 m (9 ft 4 in) and a length up to 1.06 m (3 ft 6 in).

Wedge-tailed eagles are some of their native continent's most generalised birds of prey. They reside in most habitats present in Australia, ranging from desert and semidesert to plains to mountainous areas to forests, even sometimes tropical rainforests. Their preferred habitats, however, tend towards those that have a fairly varied topography, including rocky areas, some open terrain, and native woodlots such as Eucalyptus stands.

The wedge-tailed eagle is one of the world's most powerful avian predators. Although a true generalist, which hunts a wide range of prey, including birds, reptiles, and rarely other taxa, the species is, by and large, a mammal predator. The introduction of the European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus) has been a boon to the wedge-tailed eagle and they hunt these and other invasive species in large volume, although the wedge-tailed eagle otherwise generally lives on marsupials, including many surprisingly large macropods. Additionally, the wedge-tailed eagle often eats carrion, especially while young. The species tends to pair for several years, possibly mating for life.

Wedge-tailed eagles usually construct a large stick nest in an ample tree, normally the largest in a stand, and lay one to four eggs, though typically only two. Usually, breeding efforts manage to produce one or two fledglings, which after a few months more, tend to disperse widely. Nesting failures are usually attributable to human interference, such as logging activity and other alterations, which both degrade habitats and cause disturbances. The species is known to be highly sensitive to human disturbance at the nest, which may lead to abandonment of the young.

Although historically heavily persecuted by humans through poisoning and shooting, mostly for alleged predation on sheep, wedge-tailed eagles have proved to be exceptionally resilient, and their numbers have quickly rebounded to being similar or even higher numbers than before European colonisation, due in part to humans inadvertently providing several food sources, such as rabbits and a large volume of roadkill.

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