A taxi slammed into the back of another when the car in front suddenly braked to avoid a diving eagle last Thursday.

Both drivers were injured and their vehicles seriously damaged in the accident in Sha Tin, New Territories of Hong Kong.

But the eagle fared much worse, dying on impact when it plunged into the taxi's windscreen.

A local birdwatcher said it was an ordinary eagle commonly seen gliding fairly low in search of live prey on the ground and in coastal waters.

The taxi driver told police the eagle plummeted into his windscreen so suddenly it was too late for him to stop. The car behind suffered the same misfortune.

The birdwatcher said there were about 2,000 such large birds in Hong Kong.

(Wen Wei Po)