Crested Serpent Eagle (Spilornis) [XC579014]
by KASUN CHATHURANGA from San S\u1ea3 H\u1ed3, Sa Pa, Lao Cai, Vietnam (song)
Crested Serpent Eagle (Spilornis) [XC184286]
by Marc Anderson from Pale-Velsao,Goa, India (flight call)
Subspecies
Spilornis minimus (Sibley and Monroe 1990, 1993) has been split into Great Nicobar Serpent-Eagle (Spilornis klossi) with the remainder (i.e. nominate minimus) lumped with Crested Serpent-Eagle (Spilornis cheela) following Rasmussen and Anderton (2005).
Complex genus, with taxonomy extremely confused and tentative. Present species currently considered to form superspecies with Great Nicobar Serpent-Eagle (Spilornis klossi), Kinabalu Serpent-Eagle (Spilornis kinabaluensis), Sulawesi Serpent-Eagle (Spilornis rufipectus) and Philippine Serpent-Eagle (Spilornis holospilus), but may be conspecific with any or all of these taxa. Any or all of subspecies perplexus, abbotti, asturinus, sipora and natunensis may be valid species. Different treatment of these two groups is essentially arbitrary in most cases; extraordinary size differences suggest that some island subspecies probably merit recognition as full species. Situation in Nicobar Is particularly complicated and uncertain, although presence of two different species of Spilornis generally agreed upon: subspecies davisoni said to occur by some authors; subspecies minimus often considered separate species, usually including Great Nicobar Serpent-Eagle (Spilornis klossi). Several further subspecies have been described.
The following 21 subspecies are recognised:
cheela (Latham, 1790) - Northern India and Nepal.
melanotis (Jerdon, 1841) - India southern from Gujarat and Gangetic Plain.
spilogaster (Blyth, 1852) - Sri Lanka.
burmanicus Swann, 1920 - Burma, south-western China, Thailand and Indochina.
davisoni Hume, 1873 - Andaman Is; possibly also Nicobar Is.
minimus Hume, 1873 - Central Nicobar Is. Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Nicobar Serpent-Eagle (Spilornis minimus).
ricketti Sclater, WL, 1919 - Northern Vietnam and south-central and south-eastern China.
perplexus Swann, 1922 - Southern Ryukyu Is.
hoya Swinhoe, 1866 - Taiwan.
rutherfordi Swinhoe, 1870 - Hainan.
palawanensis Sclater, WL, 1919 - Palawan group (Philippines).
pallidus Walden, 1872 - Lowlands of northern Borneo.
richmondi Swann, 1922 - Southern Borneo.
natunensis Chasen, 1935 - Natuna Is and Belitung I (off western and south-western Borneo). Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Natuna Serpent-Eagle (Spilornis natunensis).
malayensis Swann, 1920 - Malay Peninsula (from southern Tenasserim), nearby Anambas Is and northern Sumatra.
batu Meyer de Schauensee & Ripley, 1940 - Southern Sumatra and Batu Is (off western Sumatra).
abbotti Richmond, 1903 - Simeulue I (off western Sumatra). Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Simeulene Serpent-Eagle (Spilornis abbotti).
asturinus Meyer, AB, 1884 - Nias I (off western Sumatra). Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Nias Serpent-Eagle (Spilornis asturinus).
sipora Chasen & Kloss, 1926 - Mentawai Is (off western Sumatra). Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Mentawai Serpent-Eagle (Spilornis sipora).
bido (Horsfield, 1821) - Java and Bali.
baweanus Oberholser, 1917 - Bawean I (off northern Java). Considered by some authors to be a distinct species, Bawean Serpent-Eagle (Spilornis baweanus).
Similar Species
Kinabalu Serpent-Eagle (Spilornis kinabaluensis) which is larger, has a darker plumage, black throat, longer wings, darker underwing coverts, broader white bands on tail.
References
See References.
BirdLife International Species Factsheet