The Philippine eagle lives only in the Philippines. It lives in forests on four islands: Luzon, Samar, Leyte and Mindanao. It lives from sea level up to about 1,800 meters (5,900 feet) in the mountains. A pair of Philippine eagles has a territory of 60 to 130 square kilometers. A territory is the home area of a pair. This eagle is one of the largest in the world. Its wings stretch about 6.5 feet (1.9 meters) from tip to tip.
Philippine eagles hunt animals such as flying squirrels and monkeys. They also eat birds, snakes and lizards. On the island of Mindanao, flying lemurs are the main prey of Philippine eagles. Pairs sometimes hunt together as a team. Besides hunting as a pair, Philippine eagles sometimes simply sit and wait until prey is spotted. The eagle used to be called the monkey-eating eagle, but monkeys are not its only food.
A Philippine eagle nest sits 27 to 50 meters above the ground. It is made of twigs and sticks piled on top of each other. The eagles nest in giant dipterocarp trees such as lauan. A mother lays only one egg at a time. Philippine eagles usually breed only once every two to three years. Both parents take turns sitting on the egg, which takes about two months to hatch. Philippine eagles reach adulthood at 5 to 7 years of age.
According to National Geographic in 2019, the Philippines has lost almost 75 percent of its forests since the start of the 20th century. Losing forest is the biggest danger to Philippine eagles. As of November 2026, about 400 pairs are estimated to be left in the wild, and the eagle is listed as Critically Endangered. A program to save the eagle began in 1969. Rescued eagles are cared for and set free again when they are healthy. In 1995 President Fidel Ramos declared the Philippine eagle the national bird of the Philippines.
Words to know
- territory: home area
- prey: hunted animals
- adulthood: grown-up age
- estimated: a careful guess
- dipterocarp: a giant tree
