This species is distinct in typical adult plumage for its blackish back, whitish underside and orange-red tail, while juvenile augur buzzards are generally rather brown in colour; however a dark morph is known, which causes the bird's entire body to become darker.

This is a typical buteonine raptor, being a generalist predator which tends to prefer small mammals supplemented by reptiles and birds among various prey items.

It can be confused with wintering steppe buzzard, but the augur is considerably larger and bulkier with broader wings and a heavier flight style and an unbarred undertail.

The augur buzzard is found from eastern Sudan and Ethiopia[11] (also northern Somalia, inhabited by the subspecies B. a. archeri) down through the northeast of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Uganda, Kenya, parts of Tanzania into Zambia, Malawi, Zimbabwe, Mozambique, western Angola and west-central Namibia.

They seem to prefer to hunt in elevated savanna grasslands, high moorland, cropland[11] sometimes into open forest or desert edges as well.

[14] The large (up to 1 m [3 ft 3 in] wide) stick nest is built in a tree or on a crag, and is often reused and enlarged in subsequent seasons.

On average two (sometimes only one and rarely three) creamy or bluish white eggs are laid and incubated by the female only, although food is brought to her on the nest by the male.

The primary foods for augur buzzards seem to include either small, terrestrial mammals or reptiles, chiefly snakes and lizards.

[15] In Tanzania, the stomach contents of augur buzzards similarly consisted mostly of assorted rat species and lizards.

[16] In the above Zimbabwe study, the most often taken reptiles recorded the giant plated lizards and common flat lizards but could extend to larger and more dangerous prey such as Nile monitors (though doubtfully large adults) and highly venomous snakes such as puff adders, night adders and Mozambique spitting cobras.

[17][16] Elsewhere mole-rats may be preferred, such as in Kenya, and these are likely hunted largely from flight as their tendency to stay in the cover of tall grasses makes them difficult to still-hunt.

[2][10][19][20][21] The Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League currently use an augur buzzard named Taima as a live mascot at games.