Among the major conservation issues covered by Africa Environment and Wildlife to date are Table Mountain, St Lucia and the status of the wild dog. The martial eagle, probably the most majestic of southern Africa's raptors, is on the receiving end of a conservation initiative backed by Total SA to mark the company's forty year's of environmental involvement. Gerhard Verdoorn of the Endangered Wildlife Trust's Raptor Conservation Group, said the martial eagle is Africa's largest eagle with a wingspan of over 2,2 m and a body mass of up to 6,5 kg. Its plumage is dark brown on the upper parts with a snowy white crest speckled with dark brown blotches. Its head is brown and a small crest of feathers is often displayed when the bird is at rest.
Martial eagles occur in virtually all habitats of South Africa.
Bushveld and lowveld with thin large trees are favoured but the birds have no problem in negotiating the semi-arid Karoo and Kalahari desert. Healthy populations of martial eagles nest in the Kalahari, southern Karoo, eastern Cape Karoo, Lowveld, the Kruger National Park, northern KwaZulu-Natal and the bushveld. Landowners who protect martial eagles will receive special gate signs indicating their farms are official martial eagle conservation areas. The fuel company is also the official sponsor of the Raptor Conservation Group's rehabilitation centre at the Free Sate Raptor Project in Bloemfontein. Courtesy of the Pretoria News, Pretoria.