🐍 Black mamba vs Secretarybird 🦅
The black mamba is about twice as long as the secretarybird.
Getting the animals ready…
| Row | 🐍 Black mamba | 🦅 Secretarybird |
|---|---|---|
| Size The black mamba is about twice as long as the secretarybird. | 7.2 to 8.9 ft2.2 to 2.7 m1 | 35 in to 3.9 ft90 cm to 1.2 m2 |
| Top speed We don't have a checked number for the secretarybird yet. | 12 mph20 km/h1 | no checked number yet |
| Weight We don't have a checked number for the black mamba yet. | no checked number yet | 5.1 to 9.4 lb2.3 to 4.3 kg2 |
| Lives The secretarybird usually lives about one and a half times as long as the black mamba. | 11 years11 years1 | 19 years19 years2 |
| Eats Both eat meat. | small mammals such as rodents, squirrels and hyraxes, and sometimes birds | insects and small mammals, and sometimes birds, eggs, frogs, lizards and snakes |
| Lives in They can live in the same kind of place. | wooded savanna, rocky hills and river forests in south and east Africa | open savanna, grassland and scrub across Africa south of the Sahara |
Which one? Black mamba or secretarybird
🏁 Who would win the race?
We don't have a checked top speed for the secretarybird yet, so there is no race.
We only race. Real animals mostly avoid each other. A race is the only fair contest: who reaches the tree first, by top speed. Our face-off books compare real numbers, and nobody gets hurt.
9 things to know about Black mamba vs Secretarybird
- The black mamba: A very long, quick snake of the African savanna.
- The secretarybird: A tall African bird of prey that walks a long way each day.
- They are different kinds of animal. The black mamba is a reptile, so it has scaly skin; the secretarybird is a bird, so it has feathers and lays eggs.
- The black mamba is about twice as long as the secretarybird: 1 against 2.
- The secretarybird usually lives about one and a half times as long as the black mamba. Usual lifespans: 1 for the black mamba and 2 for the secretarybird.
- Both eat meat. The black mamba eats small mammals such as rodents, squirrels and hyraxes, and sometimes birds; the secretarybird eats insects and small mammals, and sometimes birds, eggs, frogs, lizards and snakes.
- The black mamba lives in wooded savanna, rocky hills and river forests in south and east Africa. The secretarybird lives in open savanna, grassland and scrub across Africa south of the Sahara. They can live in the same kind of place.
- The black mamba: doing fine (Least Concern on the IUCN Red List). 3
- The secretarybird: in danger (Endangered on the IUCN Red List). 4
Wow facts
🐍 Black mamba
- A black mamba can move quickly across the ground.
- It hides among rocks and fallen trees.
- It eats mostly small mammals.
🦅 Secretarybird
- A secretarybird walks a long way on foot each day.
- It has very long legs for a bird of prey.
- It can fly well, too.
Questions kids ask about Black mamba and Secretarybird
Which is bigger, black mamba or secretarybird?
The black mamba is about twice as long as the secretarybird: 1 against 2.
Which is heavier, black mamba or secretarybird?
We only have a checked weight for the secretarybird: 2. Scientists are still working out the other.
Which lives longer, black mamba or secretarybird?
The secretarybird usually lives about one and a half times as long as the black mamba. Usual lifespans: 1 for the black mamba and 2 for the secretarybird.
What do black mamba and secretarybird eat?
Both eat meat. The black mamba eats small mammals such as rodents, squirrels and hyraxes, and sometimes birds; the secretarybird eats insects and small mammals, and sometimes birds, eggs, frogs, lizards and snakes.
Where do black mamba and secretarybird live?
The black mamba lives in wooded savanna, rocky hills and river forests in south and east Africa. The secretarybird lives in open savanna, grassland and scrub across Africa south of the Sahara. They can live in the same kind of place.
Do black mambas eat secretarybirds?
The black mamba eats small mammals such as rodents, squirrels and hyraxes, and sometimes birds. Secretarybirds are not in that list, which comes from its page.
Do secretarybirds eat black mambas?
The secretarybird eats insects and small mammals, and sometimes birds, eggs, frogs, lizards and snakes. Black mambas are not in that list, which comes from its page. And the black mamba is about twice as long as the secretarybird.
Who would win, black mamba or secretarybird?
We never show fights, because a fight is not a fair way to compare animals. They can share the same kind of place, and real animals mostly keep out of each other's way. What we can compare is how big, how heavy, how fast, how long they live and what they eat, as above.
📤 Share this pair
The link carries only the two animals’ names: peabody.kids/animals/compare/black-mamba-vs-secretarybird
Where these numbers come from
- University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Animal Diversity Web: Dendroaspis polylepis (black mamba), checked 10 November 2026.
- University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Animal Diversity Web: Sagittarius serpentarius (secretarybird), checked 10 November 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 10 November 2026.
- Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 10 November 2026.