The rate of food-delivery varies from several times a day to every 3 days on average during the post-fledging period. The fledged juvenile will solicit adults (apparently even unrelated adults) for food but does not actually take the prey unless this occurs around the nest site. The first recorded kill for a young crowned occurred 61 days after fledging, although this is considered exceptionally early by the standards of this species. Flights increase incrementally through the post-fledging period, although the young do not engage in rising flights until they are fully independent. Independence appears to be triggered by the increased indifference of parents to bringing food. Due to the loud vocal interplay between the parents and the fledging eagle, the adults seem to take it as a sign that their offspring has sought independence if they return to the nesting area and hear no begging auditory response. The young eagle usually remains in the care of its parents for a total of up to 11 months after it fledges, longer than is known in almost any other raptor. The advantage of this prolonged stretch to independence is that it may make for a stronger young eagle when compared to other accipitrids which have almost no post-fledging dependency period. In 34 possible cases, 18 resulted in eggs being laid. Fledging success is approximately 83% and almost all young that leave the nest also reach independence. It is estimated that most crowned eagles will reach breeding maturity at around five years old, as is typical for other large eagle species. The crowned eagle is often described as the most powerful raptor in Africa, even more so than the two slightly heavier species endemic to Africa, the martial eagle and the Verreaux's eagle ("Aquila verreauxii"). One listing included the crowned eagle as the only bird in a ranking of the 10 strongest living land creatures (pound for pound). Elsewhere, the harpy eagle is listed as the overall most powerful living eagle and bird of prey. Since there are no known actual tests in any African raptor of the pressure per square inch (PSI) exerted via their grip, as has been done with some other large eagles, their power has extrapolated from the size of the feet and talons and from the prey they typically select. In deep forest, an adult eagle may cover a hunting range of up to , with the home ranges being smaller for those that inhabit rocky hills and cliffs abounding in hyraxes. Eagles start hunting soon after dawn and mainly kill early in the morning and in the evening prior to sundown.