The steppe eagle (Aquila nipalensis) is a large bird of prey. It belongs to the family Accipitridae, like all eagles. The steppe eagle's well-feathered legs represents it to be a member of the subfamily Aquilinae. It is also known as the "booted eagles". This species was once known to be closely related to the sedentary tawny eagle (Aquila rapax). The two forms have previously been treated as conspecific.