This is a secretarybird looking for a juicy snake to eat (photo by Will Burrard-Lucas)

Related to hawks and falcons, secretarybirds are incredibly cool and unique birds with their funny feathers and long legs.

Here are five interesting facts about them:

1. The secretarybird gets its name from the feathers behind its ears which reminded early naturalists of a secretary’s old-fashioned quill-pens that they used to put behind their ears.
2. They are a very tall bird, growing up to 1.2 metres tall, which is about the same height as my 6-year-old brother, Logan.
3. They are very fit.  Although they can fly, they prefer to hunt for their prey on foot and can walk for up to 30 kilometres in a day.
4. Secretarybirds eat large insects, small mammals, lizards and even snakes.  They use their powerful legs and talons to stomp on their prey until they are dead.
5. They have a wide range and can be found on the open grasslands of southern Africa.

I hope that you found these facts interesting and learned something new.

Are there any other interesting facts that you would like to share about secretarybirds?