Bald Eagle
Order: Falconiformes
Family: Accipitridae
Species: Haliaeetus leucocephalus
The bald eagle's scientific name (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) means "white-headed
sea-eagle."
Description
The adult bald eagle is a striking dark brownish black bird with a white head and tail. Juvenile birds are a mottled brown with white blotches. They do not obtain the full distinctive plumage of the adults until they are four or five years old. Bills, legs, and feet are a deep yellow. (Photo by Jessie Cohen, NZP)
Size: Second in size only to California condors (Gymnogyps californianus)
and about the same size as golden eagles (Aquila chrysaetos), bald eagles dwarf most other North American raptors. Their wingspans range from six and a half to seven and a half feet, while body length varies from about three to three and a half feet. Bald eagles weigh from six to eight pounds. Females are larger than males and have a slightly longer wingspan.
Life Span: Bald eagles have lived up to 48 years in zoos, although their life span in the wild is likely far shorter.
Distribution and Habitat
Bald eagles occur from Baja California and Florida north to Newfoundland and Alaska. Within this area, they are nearly always found near water, along rivers, lakes, or the sea coast and coastal marshes, reservoirs, and large lakes. They also pass over mountains and plains during migration. The northern and interior populations may migrate to open water in the winter months.
Bald eagles breed in much of Alaska (where they are most common), Canada, the Pacific Northwest, along the East Coast, the Mississippi River, and the Gulf Coast, around the Great Lakes, and in other areas with sufficient water and wildlife. The birds winter
along the coasts and across much of the U.S. Some reach northwestern Mexico.
Near Washington, D.C., bald eagles have increased around the Chesapeake Bay and its tributaries. They nest at several sites around the Capital Beltway, and have been seen flapping over the National Zoo.
Although unique to North America, the bald eagle's closest relatives live in other parts of the world. These include the African fish-eagle (Haliaeetus vocifer)
of sub-Saharan Africa and the white-tailed sea-eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla) of Eurasia.