Common around most of the coastline. Scarce along coasts near major cities.
Habitat
Usually coastal, foreshores, mudflats, sand-pits, headlands, beaches, bays, estuaries, mangroves, seasonally flooded inland swamps, lagoons and floodplains. Often far inland on large pools of major rivers.
Australia (B), Bangladesh (B), Brunei Darussalam (B), Cambodia (B), China (mainland) (B), Hong Kong (China) (B), India (B), Indonesia (B), Laos (B), Malaysia (B), Myanmar (B), Papua New Guinea (B), Philippines (B), Singapore (B), Sri Lanka (B), Thailand (B), Timor-Leste (B) (NB), Vietnam (B).
Vagrant to Christmas Island, Taiwan (China).
India and Sri Lanka through south-eastern Asia, Philippines, Wallacea, New Guinea and Bismarcks to Australia and Tasmania.
White-bellied Sea Eagle (Haliaeetus leucogaster) [XC553328]
by Romuald Mikusek from Penang Island (near Tanjung Bungah), Pulau Pinang, Malaysia (call, flight call)
White-bellied Sea Eagle (Haliaeetus leucogaster) [XC665906]
by Desmond Allen from Peninsular Malaysia (near Kuala Selangor), Selangor, Malaysia (call)
Nest
A huge structure composed of sticks, lined with leaves, high up in a tall tree, on ledges of cliffs or on the ground on off-shore islands. The same nest is often used for years in succession.
Eggs (Guide)
2; plain white; oval; about 71 x 53 mm. Incubation: about 42 days; mainly by female, but male relieves for periods during the day.
Young
Semi-altricial, nidifugous. Fledge in 63 - 70 days.
Subspecies
Sanford's Sea-eagle (Haliaeetus sanfordi) is retained as a species in contrast to Debus (2006), who proposed on the basis of molecular work, that sanfordi be treated as a subspecies of White-bellied Sea-Eagle (Haliaeetus leucogaster). The BirdLife Taxonomic Working Group consider the considerable differences in morphology, size and proportion, as indicated by Ferguson-Lees and Christie (2001), argue in favour of retaining sanfordi as a full species.
Similar Species
Osprey (Pandion haliaetus)
Smaller. Immatures with adults. Has a bold dark eye mark. Wings are slimmer, arched and have a black 'wrist'-mark.
Wedge-tailed Eagle (Aquila audax)
Larger. Juveniles with juveniles and immatures. Blacker. Tail is longer and diamond-wedge shaped. Legs are fully feathered.
Compare Images
The Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Pizzey, G., and Knight, E., 1997, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 19691 5
Field Guide to Australian Birds Morecombe, M., 2000, Steve Parish Publishing Pty Ltd. ISBN 1 876282 10 X
Field Guide to the Birds of Australia Simpson, K., and Day, N., 1999, 6th Edition, Viking ISBN 0 670 87918 5
Reader's Digest Complete Book of Australian Birds 1988, 2nd Edition, Reader's Digest ISBN 0 949819 99 9
What Bird is That? 1984, Revised Edition, Angus & Robertson, Sydney ISBN 0 207 14846 5
Handbook of Australian, New Zealand & Antarctic Birds 1990 - , Oxford University Press, Melbourne ISBN 0 19 553244 9
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