Nesting and Perching Habitat Use of the Madagascar Fish-Eagle

Abstract

We documented Madagascar Fish-Eagle (Haliaeetus vociferoides) nest and perch use on lakes and rivers and compared parameters of used trees to unused reference trees. Nest and perch trees were broader and taller, had more unobstructed branches, and were less obstructed by adjacent trees compared to reference trees. Perch trees also were more often deciduous than reference trees. Nest sites had more shoreline perch trees than reference sites. Logistic regression models with tree height as the independent variable distinguished nest and perch trees front randomly selected reference trees. Models with number of perch trees along a 1.25 ba (50 in width) shoreline section distinguished nest sites from reference sites. These models suggest that the presence of trees greater than or equal to15 in tall within 50 in of the shoreline is a good predictor of Madagascar Fish-Eagle habitat use.