Interesting Facts
Cultural significance
The secretary bird featured on the South African coat of arms, where it is depicted in flight, as a symbol of strength and protection.1 It is also the national bird of Sudan and features on their emblem and presidential flag.2
Walking on stilts
Secretary birds are raptors that hunt on the ground, walking 20-30 km per day with their long legs. They have been described as “eagles on stilts”. Their long legs not only give them a good vantage point from which to find prey hiding in the grasses but can also deal a deadly kick. Additionally, their tough, scaled legs keep their bodies at a safe distance from venomous snakes that might try to fight back.
What's in the name?
The name secretary bird refers to the long black feathers on their heads, resembling a quill pen behind the ear of a secretary. Their scientific name, Sagittarius serpentarius, means “hunter of snakes”.
Hunting
While they are famous for their impressive ability to kill snakes, they mainly eat insects. They also eat small mammals, other birds, lizards, amphibians, and eggs. When hunting, they walk through open, grassy areas in search of prey. Smaller prey items, like insects, they will grab in their beak and swallow whole. Larger and more dangerous prey, like snakes, will kick with their strong legs.
Dramatic displays
It’s not just their hunting behaviour that is fascinating to watch. They also have several territorial displays, like soaring high above their nest and flying in undulating patterns. They will defend their territory aggressively by pursuing intruders on foot with their wings outstretched in a threatening pose. If they catch up to the intruder, they will jump up and kick at them with their powerful legs.
During the breeding season, they perform similar aerial displays while making croaking calls. Sometimes, while performing undulating manoeuvres, one bird will dive at the other while the second will turn on its back, presenting its claws at the diving bird.
Secretary bird pairs greet each other at their nest by bowing their heads up and down repeatedly while making guttural croaks.
Breeding behaviour
Secretary birds breed throughout the year. They build wide, flat nests on top of Acacia trees. They can lay 1 to 3 eggs per clutch and raise three chicks. After 10-14 weeks, nestlings fledge and explore the area around their nest. After 4-6 months, they will disperse. They travel large distances during dispersal but will return to the area where they grew up to breed.
Conservation status and threats
While secretary birds are widely distributed throughout the grasslands, savannas, and agricultural areas of sub-Saharan Africa, they are endangered, and their numbers are declining, even within protected areas such as the Kruger National Park.5
Their biggest threat is habitat loss, especially given their large territories and long travelling distances. Their habitat is threatened by agricultural, residential, and other forms of development. Wood encroachment and bad management practices can degrade existing habitats and reduce the abundance of insects and other prey species.
Other serious threats to secretary birds include collisions with powerlines, secondary poisoning, and hunting and capture for traditional purposes or trade.
Conservation projects
The Birdlife South Africa Secretary Bird Conservation Project began in 2011, following the secretary bird’s uplisting to vulnerable status.6 The project focuses on monitoring secretary bird movements and nest locations using GPS, studying juvenile fledging behaviour and survival, habitat requirements, and foraging behaviour, and understanding the effects of climate change on secretary birds. They are also involved in stewardship programmes that enlist landowners to commit to sustainable practices on private land to allow coexistence with secretary birds.
The Northern Tanzania Secretary Bird Conservation Project is collecting comprehensive census data on the secretary bird population, distribution, and nesting sites, especially in the Serengeti National Park.7 They are also studying the factors that drive their distribution and survival, dispersal patterns of juveniles, and the genetic structure and diversity of their population.8 Additionally, they are raising awareness in the local communities through educational programmes.
Conclusion
While these large birds have been an iconic feature of the African landscape, there is still a lot we need to learn about them. Researching their distribution, movement and behavioural patterns is essential to developing a conservation plan. The conservation projects in place to protect these birds bring hope for their survival.
References
- South Africa Department of Sports, Arts and Culture. 2025. Inspiring a Nation of Winners.
- World Atlas. 2025. Flags, symbols & currency of Sudan.
- Whitecross, M. A., Retief, E. F., & Smit-Robinson, H. A. 2019. Dispersal dynamics of juvenile Secretary birds Sagittarius serpentarius in southern Africa. Ostrich, 90(2), 97–110.
- BirdLife South Africa. 2019. Secretary bird displays behaviour.
- BirdLife International. 2020. Sagittarius serpentarius. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species 2020: e.T22696221A173647556.
- BirdLife South Africa. 2018. Conserving South Africa’s Secretarybirds.
- Romani, F., Mmassy, E. C., Pellitteri-Rosa, D., Posillico, M., & Ramella Levis, E. 2025. Habitat selection by an extraordinary savannah raptor: environmental factors driving abundance of the Secretarybird Sagittarius serpentarius in the Serengeti National Park (Tanzania). Bird Study, 72(3), 263–286.
- 2023. Northern Tanzania Raptors Project: An in-depth study of the secretarybird.
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Secretary Bird l Birds of the Bush
EcoTraining brings you another episode in our Birds of the Bush series. In this month’s episode, we join EcoTraining Freelance Instructor JP Le Roux again as he shares some interesting facts about the glamourous Secretary bird. The Secretary Bird is quite unique in its own way as it is the only bird of prey that has its own family grouping. These birds are also abnormal in size and appearance compared to other birds of prey. They stand almost 1.4m tall and can weigh up to 4 kgs. Watch this video to learn more about the Secretary Bird.
