Description
The bald eagle is a classic icon of the United States, standing for strength, courage, and freedom. Bald eagles are large, predatory raptors that are recognizable for their brown body and wings, white head and tail, and hooked yellow beak. Their feet, which are also yellow, are equipped with sharp black talons.
Voice
Calls. For such a powerful bird, the Bald Eagle emits surprisingly weak-sounding calls—usually a series of high-pitched whistling or piping notes. The female may repeat a single, soft, high-pitched note that has been called “unlike any other calls in nature”; apparently this signals her readiness for copulation.
Diet
The bald eagle is an opportunistic carnivore with the capacity to consume a great variety of prey. Throughout their range, fish often comprise the majority of the eagle's diet. In 20 food habit studies across the species' range, fish comprised 56% of the diet of nesting eagles, birds 28%, mammals 14% and other prey 2%.
Habitat
They live near water and favor coasts and lakes where fish are plentiful, though they will also snare and eat small mammals. Bald eagles are believed to mate for life. A pair constructs an enormous stick nest—one of the bird-world's biggest—high above the ground and tends to a pair of eggs each year.
Behaviour
Bald eagles make a high-pitched squeaking sound. Other interesting behaviors include “talon clasping” or “cartwheel display”, where two eagles clasp each other's talons in mid air and spin down, letting go only when they've almost reached the ground. This is may be a courtship ritual as well as a territorial battle.
Fun Fact
4 Cool Facts About Bald Eagles
- During the 1970s, bald eagles were seriously endangered.
- The bald eagle has been the national emblem of the United States since 1782.
- When it comes to sight, eagles have two centers of focus.
- The Bald Eagle is a close relative to the White-Tailed Sea Eagle
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