Eastern Buzzard

The eastern buzzard or Japanese buzzard is a medium to large bird of prey that is sometimes considered a subspecies of the widespread common buzzard. It was formerly treated as a subspecies of the common buzzard, but molecular phylogenetic studies revealed that B. buteo as then circumscribed was polyphyletic, leading to the recognition of the eastern buzzard and Himalayan buzzard as distinct species. It is native to East Asia and some parts of Russia and South Asia, with some birds wintering in Southeast Asia. It is similar to the steppe buzzard. It is carnivorous.