We are the national bird of the United States and live in North America. Though called bald, we have a head of white real feathers that shine brightly and contrast with our chocolate-brown body and wings.
We migrate in large numbers and nest near water bodies. You‛ll often find us perching high up on tall trees and mountains.
Lakes, reservoirs, and forests with lots of fish and small prey are our ideal habitats. And you will find us almost everywhere from Mexica through the United States to Canada and Alaska.
Our brown bodies and wings, white heads and tails and hooked yellow beaks and feet with sharp black talons (claws) all add to our majesty.
Being quite light 4 to 6 Kgs or 8 to 13 pounds, we cannot carry big weights. Therefore, please don‛t believe tales about our carrying off dogs and other pets!
We Bald Eagles fly and hunt alone. We often soar over 10,000 feet or 3048 meters high and, with our superb eyesight, we can spot fish and other prey a mile or more away.
Females lay 1 – 3 white eggs at a time. Both parents take turns sitting gently on the eggs for 34 – 36 days to warm and incubate them. And we raise our eaglets together.
Our Females are about 25% larger than males. While females weigh 10 to 15 pounds or 5 to 7 kgs, males weigh 6 to 9 pounds or 3 to 4 kgs. Their height is 28 to 38 inches or 71 to 96 Cm and their wingspan is 5.5 to 8 feet or 1.6 to 2.4 Meters.
The first flight of our young ones is when they are 10 – 12 weeks old. Then for the next 4 or 5 years, they lead nomadic lives flying over 100 miles or 160kms every day!
We bald eagle couples often stay together for life and build our nest jointly. We enjoy a lifespan of 20 to 35 years in the wild and longer in captivity.
A spiritual symbol of native Americans for far longer than that, one would think that we have been living safe lives. But alas, it has not been so and, at one time, our numbers dropped alarmingly low as we were hunted for sport, and because humans us despised as a menace to livestock and for disturbing their fish traps.
We are the classic symbol of the United States and denote strength, courage and freedom. Having been the national bird of the USA since 1782.
We are also on many official United States things like passports, quarters and US dollar bills.
DDT was banned in the United States. These helped increase our numbers and in 2007 we were removed from the US list of endangered and threatened species and thankfully, we now flourish under national protection.
QR Book Bald Eagle
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