This Powerful Bird Can Crush a Snake’s Skull, No Problem

The African savanna is home to many amazing and unique animals, including the secretary bird. This striking creature may look like it’s dressed for a fancy masquerade ball, but don’t expect it to be a welcoming host! As one unlucky jackal learned in this YouTube video, these birds are not animals to trifle with.

The Elegant Attire of the Secretary Bird

The secretary bird is tall. In fact, it is the tallest raptor in the world and has the longest legs of any other bird of prey! Standing over 4 feet tall with a 7-foot wingspan, this striking bird has quite an imposing appearance. It has jet-black feathers on its thighs that look like fancy 18th-century breeches, and fluffy white and gray plumage on its main body. Its face has a patch of red, orange, and yellow skin like a colorful mask, which frames a curved beak and long black eyelashes. To top it all off are the long, decorative feathers on the back of the bird’s head.

The bird’s unique appearance is likely where it got its unusual name. When Europeans first saw these birds, they thought they resembled the male secretaries from their home countries. From a distance, the birds kind of look like they are wearing long gray coats and dark knee-length pants. Even the bird’s head feathers look like quill pens tucked behind their ears for writing.

Where Do Secretary Birds Live?

Secretary birds live only in Africa, in the areas south of the Sahara Desert. They usually live in grassy savannas with some acacia trees and plenty of open space for walking around. These birds spend most of the day walking on their long slender legs, covering 12 to 20 miles each day as they patrol their territories and look for food. They are fierce hunters and aggressive protectors of their territories.

Secretary birds will eat almost anything they can get a hold of. They typically hunt small- to medium-sized animals like insects, crabs, mice, hares, birds, and snakes. In fact, they even hunt venomous snakes like cobras and puff adders! Quick and aggressive, they use their strong legs and sharp claws to rapidly strike down on the snakes’ heads and crush their skulls before the snakes can bite.

A Feathered Force to be Reckoned With

The secretary bird doesn’t like intruders who might try to steal its food. In this YouTube video, filmed in the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park in South Africa, an unlucky jackal quickly discovered just how aggressive these birds can be. Jackals eat many of the same things that secretary birds hunt. The jackal in this video got too close to a secretary bird, and the large bird was determined to teach it a lesson for trespassing. The bird spreads its enormous wings wide and raises the feathers on its head, making it appear even larger and more terrifying while it repeatedly stomps and cuts off the jackal’s retreat. Eventually, however, the jackal found a way out. But after that harsh lesson, it likely won’t bother another secretary bird anytime soon.