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Bald Eagle The bald eagle, our national bird, is the only eagle unique to
North America. It is found over most of the continent, from Alaska
and Canada to northern Mexico. There are an estimated 50,000 bald
eagles in the United States, with 80 percent of them found in
Alaska. At
one time, the word "bald" meant "white," not hairless. Thus, the
bald eagle gets its name from the snow-white head it develops once
it reaches about the age of five. The neck and tail are white
also, and the body is a brownish-black. The wingspan of this bird can
reach up to 2.4m.
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Some, but not all, eagles migrate. Those that do ride columns
of rising air, called thermals, and can average speeds of 50
kilometers per hour. An eagle can circle in a strong thermal to
high altitudes, then glide long distances in the direction of its
migration until it finds the next column of rising air.
Although
the bald eagle eats dead animals and sometimes catches crippled
waterfowl, it is primarily a fish eater. Generally, the eagles follow seasonal food supplies. As lakes
and streams freeze over, bald eagles must go south to find open
fresh water or head to the coast.
Bald eagles may use the same nest year after
year, adding more twigs and branches each time, increasing in size until they break off or
the whole tree falls in a winter storm.
The
female lays one to three white eggs in a large nest placed in a tall
tree. One nest was found that had been used for 34 years and weighed
more than two tons. |
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