Crested honey buzzard
The crested honey buzzard ("Pernis ptilorhynchus") is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as kites, eagles, and harriers. This species is also known as the Oriental honey buzzard. The name is derived from its diet which consists mainly of the larvae of bees and wasps extracted from honey combs. Description. Despite its name, this species is not related to "Buteo" buzzards, and is taxonomically closer to the kites. It appears long-necked with a small head (resembling that of a pigeon), and soars on flat wings. The  head lacks a strong superciliary ridge, giving it a facial appearance very unlike a raptor. It has a long tail and a short head crest. It is brown above, but not as dark as the European honey buzzard, and paler below. A dark throat stripe is present. Unusually for a large bird of prey, the sexes can be distinguished. The male has a blue-grey head with brown iris, while the female's head is brown and the iris is yellow. She is slightly larger and darker than the male. The male has two black bands in the tail and  three black underwing bands, while the female has three black tail bands and four narrower black underwing bands. The juvenile has extensive black primary tips with narrower under-wing bands. It has a yellow cere at the base of the bill, and a dark iris. The colouration and the tail pattern of the species are highly variable. The similarity in plumage between juvenile crested honey buzzards and the "Nisaetus" hawk-eagles may have arisen as a partial protection against predation by larger raptors. The eagles have stronger bills and talons, and are likely to be less vulnerable than the "Pernis  species. Similar mimicry is shown by the juveniles of the European honey buzzard, which resembles the common buzzard. Although the northern goshawk is capable of killing both species, it is likely to be more cautious about attacking the better protected Buteo" species. Distribution and habitat. The crested honey buzzard is a summer migrant to Siberia, wintering in tropical Southeast Asia. Elsewhere, it is more-or-less resident. Crested buzzards that migrate from breeding areas in Japan to wintering areas in Southeast Asia fly over the East China Sea. This 700-km nonstop flight over water is possible because during autumn , winds over the sea blow in the same direction as the birds' direction of flight (i.e. wind support). As climate change affects wind conditions worldwide, the wind support over the East China Sea could be reduced. Behaviour and Ecology. Diet. The crested honey buzzard is a specialist feeder, living mainly on the larvae of social bees and wasps, and eating bits of comb and honey. The tongue has a groove adapted for extracting larvae from the honey comb. It takes other small insect prey such as cicadas. It occasionally eats small birds, reptiles and frogs like other raptors. Breeding. The  crested honey buzzard breeds in woodland, and is inconspicuous except in the spring, when the mating display includes wing-clapping. The display of roller-coasting in flight and fluttering wings at the peak of the ascent are characteristic of the genus "Pernis". It breeds in Asia from central Siberia east to Japan. The nesting season in India is April - June, though it starts in February in South India. Male and female share the responsibilities of rearing the young. Folklore. In the Java island of Indonesia, people living in or near forested areas suffer from attacks, sometimes fatal, by giant honey  bees. The local people and honey collectors blame the honey buzzards for these attacks. This raptor attacks the nests of the giant honey bee. As it flies away with a piece of the honeycomb in its claws, it is pursued by angry bees. The local belief is that as its escape strategy the honey buzzard flies close to humans in the vicinity to transfer the attack of the angry bees to the humans. However, in a study of the hunting behaviour of honey buzzards conducted between 2003 to 2019, no evidence of this strategy was observed by the researchers. They  surmised that a decline in the habitat due to human activity has increased the conflict between bees and humans. Taxonomy. "Pernis ptilorhynchus" includes the following subspecies: