The crested honey buzzard (Pernis ptilorhynchus)[3] is a bird of prey in the family Accipitridae, which also includes many other diurnal raptors such as kites, eagles, and harriers.

The name is derived from its diet, which consists mainly of the larvae of bees and wasps extracted from honey combs.

They prefer well-forested areas with open spaces and are found from sea level up to 1,800 m (5,900 ft).

These include an elongated head for foraging on underground nests and a groove in the tongue for feeding on honey.

A mass of short, dense feathers on the head and neck protect against stinging attacks by social wasps.

In 1874, the British Museum had 18 specimens of the crested honey buzzard and its Catalogue listed nine different species names of genus Pernis for these.

[7] The crested honey buzzard (Pernis ptilorhynchus) includes six subspecies, which are shown in the table below.

The head lacks a strong superciliary ridge, giving it a facial appearance very unlike a raptor.

[10]: 342–346 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.

[11] These are examples of Batesian mimicry,[citation needed] named for the English naturalist and explorer H.W.

The crested honey buzzard is a summer migrant to Siberia and Korea, Japan, wintering in tropical Southeast Asia and the Indian subcontinent.

This record is the first known occurrence of this species in North America, and the individual photographed represents the subspecies P. p.

[13] The crested honey buzzard prefers well-forested lowland and hilly areas that are broken by open glades.

[5] 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.

[10][17] The breeding season in the migratory range is June to mid-September for central Siberia and April to August in Japan.

In their summer breeding grounds in Japan, the birds dig up underground social wasp nests with their talons.

In addition, the long slender beak with a hooked tip, and the eyes set far back, are adaptations well suited for foraging in underground nests.

[19] In the wintering regions in South Asia, crested honey buzzards are observed attacking social wasp nests in trees.

[15] When foraging both underground and arboreal nests, the birds have to contend with stinging attacks by wasps.

The honey buzzard has a dense mat of short feathers under its beak, around its eyes and nostrils and on its neck with barbules closer together.

Its feathers were observed to have a white filamentous covering that is not present in black kites and grey-faced buzzards.

Japanese researchers have developed a mathematical model to estimate the effect of climate change on the favourable winds over this section.

It has recently spread to the Middle East and regularly winters in small numbers in Arabia.

[22][23] In the Java island of Indonesia, people living in or near forested areas suffer from attacks, sometimes fatal, by giant honey bees.

However, in a study of the hunting behaviour of honey buzzards conducted between 2003 and 2019, no evidence of this strategy was observed by the researchers.