Crested Goshawk

The crested goshawk is a forest hawk, 30–46cm long, the female much larger than the male, with short broad wings and a long tail for manoeuvring through trees. Its larger size and a short crest, clear in profile, separate it from the besra. The male has a dark brown crown, grey sides to the head, black moustache and throat stripes, and pale underparts streaked rufous on the breast and barred on the belly; the female has a browner head and brown markings. Its flight is a slow flap, slow flap, straight glide (Wikipedia, general species account).

It is mainly a lowland bird of tropical and warm subtropical forest and is resident all year, becoming rare at the northern edge of its range. Like its relatives it is secretive, hunting birds, mammals and reptiles in woodland by flying from a perch to take prey by surprise. It builds a stick nest in a tree and lays two or three eggs. In parts of South-east Asia it is adapting to towns. SoIB 2023 lists it as a resident forest bird in India with local movements, estimates a long-term decline of about 52%, and rates it a Moderate conservation priority (Wikipedia, general species account; SoIB 2023).