Crested Serpent Eagle breeds in southern Asia from India and Sri Lanka to south China, south east Asia and Indonesia. It is a forest bird which builds a stick nest in a tree near water and lays a single egg.
Crested Serpent Eagle is a medium large raptor at about 55-75cm in length. Adults have dark brown upperparts and head, and have a hooded appearance at rest. The underparts and underwing coverts are pale brown. In soaring flight, the broad wings are held in a shallow V. The tail and underside of the flight feathers are black with broad white bars
Sexes are similar, but young birds have a whitish head, underparts and underwing, the latter showing darker barring.
Crested Serpent Eagle, as its English and scientific names suggest, is a specialist reptile eater which hunts over woodland for snakes and lizards..
