Polyboroides typus

The African Harrier Hawk or Gymnogene is a fairly common bird of prey in Southern Africa, and is renowned for being a very accomplished raider of bird’s nests. It has long, double-jointed legs that can bend at odd angles, which gives it an advantage in this regard.

My best sighting of this species took place in 2019 at Nambithi Game Reserve when my wife spotted an adult trying to snatch eggs and/or baby chicks from the nests of an unsuspecting colony of weavers. A close second, was seeing a fork-tailed drongo chase this fascinating species over our game vehicle at Monyane Game Reserve in northern KwaZul Natal, South Africa.