The Verreaux's eagle is essentially unmistakable, especially in adulthood. No other black-colored raptor in its range approaches this species' large size, nor possesses its distinctive patterns of white. The golden eagle is of similar size or marginally larger size and the two species are the heaviest living Aquila species and measure only marginally less than the slightly lighter-weight Australasian wedge-tailed eagle in total wing and bill-to-tail length. While the juvenile Verreaux's eagle is quite different from the adult's, its plumage is no less distinctive. No other accipitrid shares the mottled brownish body, blackish wings with large white patches or contrasting whitish, rufous and golden color around the head and neck as that of an immature eagle. The flight profile of Verreaux's eagle is also distinctive, as it is the only Aquila species other than the golden eagle to soar in a pronounced dihedral, with the wings held slightly above the back and primaries upturned at the tip to make a V shape. In the Bale Mountains of Ethiopia and possibly in some parts of the Arabian Peninsula and the southwestern edge of the Middle East, the ranges of the golden and Verreaux's eagles overlap, but the golden is a mostly brown bird and shares none of the Verreaux's black plumage. The immature golden eagle has white patches on its underwing as do Verreaux's but they are less extensive than those of the latter species. The wing shape also differs from the golden, as the Verreaux's eagle has very broad outer secondaries and a relatively narrow pinch at the base of the primaries, whereas the tapering of a golden eagle's wing is more gradual. The Verreaux's eagle wings have variously been described as paddle, spoon or leaf shaped. Imperial eagles are another improbable but possible source of confusion, since they too have white markings on their wing coverts, but are totally different in flight profile (much flatter winged) and overall coloration (dark brown).