Eagle, Lightning (LAHYT-ning EE-guhl)

The lightning eagle is a large bird of prey that happens to be the sacred animal of the god Hadad. They are typically found around the river Amu.

Basic Information

Anatomy

Lightning eagles have a standard (if large) aquiline form, broad wings, wicked beaks, and savage claws. Both sexes are about the same size.

Visible feathers across the body are mostly white, but the ends of the feathers' barbs are light blue, giving the bird a lightning-like appearance.

Ecology and Habitats

The lightning eagle is most likely to be found where forests, mountains, and rivers meet. Their nests are placed at the highest, most isolated places they can find.

Dietary Needs and Habits

Lightning eagles are obligate carnivores and generally eat small animals, primarily rodents and fish. In a pinch, however, they'll scavenge carrion or eat any animal they can catch, up to and including small cattle.

Biological Cycle

Lightning eagles mate in the late autumn and produce a clutch of 6-8 eggs. These hatch in the mid-spring and are raised for a little more than a year before they are fully fledged and can learn to fly.

About eighty percent of lightning eagles fly well enough to land softly on their first attempt. The other twenty percent are either severely injured or killed outright. Some worshippers of Hadad will scour the forests, looking for survivors to rehabilitate. Generally, they don't find much.

Behaviour

Although they are not sapient, lightning eagles are far more intelligent than standard raptors and can recognize individual faces, and can understand when people have helped them.

Lifespan

About thirty years

Conservation Status

Harming a lightning eagle is considered a grave sin against Hadad, and will lead to execution by Hadad's worshippers. This applies even if the lightning eagle in question is not killed or even attacked first.

Average Weight

Twelve to fifteen pounds

Average Length

Thirty to fifty inches