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Common Name: Bald Eagle
Scientific Name: Haliaeetus leucocephalus
Class: Aves
Order: Falconiformes
Family: Accipitridae
Statistics: Weight: 10-13 lbs; Wingspan 6-8 feet; Body length: 2.5 - 3 feet.
Description: A large "fishing" eagle. Both sexes have the characteristic white head and tail
feathers when adults, usually by 4-6 years of age. Females are generally larger than the males.
Range/Habitat: Once widespread throughout North America. Now found in a few locations in the
lower 48 states. Frequent rivers, lakes, marshes and quiet coastal waters where there are tall trees
for them to roost and nest.
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Adaptations: Their broad wings, with deeply slotted tips, enable the eagle to soar and fly for long
distances. Their keen eyesight helps them to spot their prey moving far below. Their featherless
legs adn feet and the sharp talons are ideal for fishing. The bald eagle sometimes dives underwater
to catch a meal.
Courtship/Gestation/Birth: Breeding season lasts from December to April, depending on the
location in N. America. Eagles mate for life and use the same nest each year. The female usually
lays two white or pale blue eggs which hatch after 35 days of shared incubation by both parents.
Both parents feed the young, bringing meals to them and tearing it up into smaller pieces.
Competition for food is so great that it is rare for more than one chick to survive. The young
practice flying from the aerie (nest) but they return nightly until their parents force them to leave at
the end of summer. The immature birds are dark brown in color and don't have the adult plumage
or the yellow beak for several years.
Prey/Predator: Predator
Diet: ZM- fish, wild game. Wild- primarily fishes but also waterfowl and carrion (dead animals).
Status: Endangered. Hunting by man, habitat destruction and loss, and the poisonous effects of
chemical pollution have caused damage to the population. The pesticide, DDT, caused the most
damage to the poulation in the 1960's and 70's before it was banned in this country. The
pesticide was ingested through the food chain and concentrated in the eagle. High DDT levels
caused female eagles to produce eggs with extremely fragile shells, which broke easily and
therefore, no young survived. The bald eagle is now fully protected in the United States and
numbers are slowly rising again in some areas.
Special Notes: Was adopted as our national emblem in 1782.
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