Total length from 112 to 152 cm (44 to 60 in) and the wingspan is 191–220 cm (75–87 in). Height can range from 90 to 137 cm (35 to 54 in). This bird has an eagle-like head with a hooked bill, but has rounded wings. The secretary bird is instantly recognizable as a very large bird with an eagle-like body on crane-like legs which increases the bird’s height to as much as 1.3 m (4.3 ft) tall. Although a member of the order Accipitriformes, which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as kites, hawks, vultures, and harriers, it is given its own family, Sagittariidae. Endemic to Africa, it is usually found in the open grasslands and savannah of the sub-Saharan region. The secretarybird or secretary bird ( Sagittarius serpentarius) is a very large, mostly terrestrial bird of prey. Secretary Bird - Sagittarius serpentarius Other prey eaten by this species has included frogs, water snakes, Nile monitors ( Varanus niloticus) and baby crocodiles. Preferred prey species have reportedly included marbled lungfish ( Protopterus aethiopicus) and Senegal bichir ( Polypterus senegalus) and various Tilapia species and catfish, the latter mainly in the genus Clarias. Shoebills are largely piscivorous but are assured predators of a considerable range of wetland vertebrates.
A male will weigh on average around 5.6 kg (12 lb) and is larger than a typical female of 4.9 kg (11 lb). Weight has reportedly ranged from 4 to 7 kg (8.8 to 15.4 lb). Length from tail to beak can range from 100 to 140 cm (39 to 55 in) and wingspan is 230 to 260 cm (7 ft 7 in to 8 ft 6 in). The shoebill is a tall bird, with a typical height range of 110 to 140 cm (43 to 55 in) and some specimens reaching as much as 152 cm (60 in). It lives in tropical east Africa in large swamps from Sudan to Zambia. The adult is mainly grey while the juveniles are browner. However, genetic evidence places it with the Pelecaniformes. It has a somewhat stork-like overall form and has previously been classified with the storks in the order Ciconiiformes based on this morphology. It derives its name from its enormous shoe-shaped bill. The shoebill ( Balaeniceps rex) also known as whalehead, whale-headed stork, or shoe-billed stork, is a very large stork-like bird.
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