🦉 Eurasian eagle-owl vs Secretarybird 🦅
The secretarybird is about one and a half times as tall as the eurasian eagle-owl. They are about the same.
Getting the animals ready…
| Row | 🦉 Eurasian eagle-owl | 🦅 Secretarybird |
|---|---|---|
| Size The secretarybird is about one and a half times as tall as the eurasian eagle-owl. | 23 to 28 in58 to 71 cm1 | 35 in to 3.9 ft90 cm to 1.2 m2 |
| Top speed Neither has a checked number yet. | no checked number yet | no checked number yet |
| Weight They are about the same. | 3.5 to 9.3 lb1.6 to 4.2 kg1 | 5.1 to 9.4 lb2.3 to 4.3 kg2 |
| Lives The secretarybird lives a bit longer than the eurasian eagle-owl. | 10 to 20 years10 to 20 years1 | 19 years19 years2 |
| Eats Both eat meat. | rats, mice, voles and beetles, and sometimes larger animals and other birds | insects and small mammals, and sometimes birds, eggs, frogs, lizards and snakes |
| Lives in They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet. | forests, mountains, deserts, riverbeds and farmland across Europe, Asia and North Africa | open savanna, grassland and scrub across Africa south of the Sahara |
Which one? Eurasian eagle-owl or secretarybird
🏁 Who would win the race?
We don't have a checked top speed for the eurasian eagle-owl or 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.
10 things to know about Eurasian eagle-owl vs Secretarybird
- The eurasian eagle-owl: A huge owl with orange eyes and ear tufts.
- The secretarybird: A tall African bird of prey that walks a long way each day.
- They are the same kind of animal: both are birds.
- The secretarybird is about one and a half times as tall as the eurasian eagle-owl: 2 against 1.
- They are about the same. That is 1 for the eurasian eagle-owl and 2 for the secretarybird.
- The secretarybird lives a bit longer than the eurasian eagle-owl. Usual lifespans: 1 for the eurasian eagle-owl and 2 for the secretarybird.
- Both eat meat. The eurasian eagle-owl eats rats, mice, voles and beetles, and sometimes larger animals and other birds; the secretarybird eats insects and small mammals, and sometimes birds, eggs, frogs, lizards and snakes.
- The eurasian eagle-owl lives in forests, mountains, deserts, riverbeds and farmland across Europe, Asia and North Africa. The secretarybird lives in open savanna, grassland and scrub across Africa south of the Sahara. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet.
- The eurasian eagle-owl: doing fine (Least Concern on the IUCN Red List). 3
- The secretarybird: in danger (Endangered on the IUCN Red List). 4
Wow facts
🦉 Eurasian eagle-owl
- A Eurasian eagle-owl lives in forests, deserts and mountains.
- Females are bigger than males.
- It eats almost anything it can catch.
🦅 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 Eurasian eagle-owl and Secretarybird
Which is bigger, eurasian eagle-owl or secretarybird?
The secretarybird is about one and a half times as tall as the eurasian eagle-owl: 2 against 1.
Which is heavier, eurasian eagle-owl or secretarybird?
They are about the same. That is 1 for the eurasian eagle-owl and 2 for the secretarybird.
Which lives longer, eurasian eagle-owl or secretarybird?
The secretarybird lives a bit longer than the eurasian eagle-owl. Usual lifespans: 1 for the eurasian eagle-owl and 2 for the secretarybird.
What do eurasian eagle-owl and secretarybird eat?
Both eat meat. The eurasian eagle-owl eats rats, mice, voles and beetles, and sometimes larger animals and other birds; the secretarybird eats insects and small mammals, and sometimes birds, eggs, frogs, lizards and snakes.
Where do eurasian eagle-owl and secretarybird live?
The eurasian eagle-owl lives in forests, mountains, deserts, riverbeds and farmland across Europe, Asia and North Africa. The secretarybird lives in open savanna, grassland and scrub across Africa south of the Sahara. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet.
Who would win, eurasian eagle-owl or secretarybird?
We never show fights, because a fight is not a fair way to compare animals. They live in different kinds of places, so they would hardly ever meet. 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/eurasian-eagle-owl-vs-secretarybird
Where these numbers come from
- University of Michigan Museum of Zoology, Animal Diversity Web: Bubo bubo (Eurasian eagle-owl), 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.