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Bald Eagle
Haliaeetus leucocephalus
Interesting and Fun Facts: There were three versions of the Great Seal of the United States; the first had no Eagle and was designed by Ben Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, and John Adams. It did have E Pluribus Unum. It was tabled by congress in 1776. A second committee designed a Seal in 1780 that had the olive branch, the constellation of 13 stars and the red, white striped shield with the blue background. It too was tabled by Congress. In 1782 a thrid committee was formed and their design, plus the previous two were sent to Charles Thompson, Secretary of Congress, he made a fourth design that was revised by William Barton. On June 20, 1782 the Continenal Congress approved the Thompson/Barton design of the Great Seal, that included the Bald Eagle. [1]
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Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Chordata
Subphylum: Vertebrata
Class: Aves
Order: Falconiformes
Family: Accipitridae
Genus: Haliaeetus |
Audio for Species
Call
Song
from Macaulay Library |
Species Related Links
Additional Eagle Pictures
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Male and Female Adult
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Description
Length: 28" to 40" (70 to 102 cm) Weight: 5.5 to 15 lb. (2.5 to 7 kilograms) Wingspan: 66" to 96" (1.68 m to 2.44 m)
The plumage of an adult Bald Eagle is brown with a white head and tail. The tail is moderately long and slightly wedge-shaped. The beak, feet, and irises are bright yellow. Males and females are the same color, but females are 25 percent larger than males. The juvenile is brown, speckled with white until the fifth year.
The Bald Eagle soars on thermal currents and is a puissant flier. It reaches speeds up to 43 mph (70 kilometers) when soaring and winging. It can reach speeds up to 99 mph (160 kilometers) while diving.
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Juvenile
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Habitat, Range, and Feeding
The nest are the largest of all North American birds, measuring up to 8 feet (2.5 m) wide, and 13 feet (4 m) deep, and weighing one ton.
Found throughout North America. prefering areas around large bodies of water for feeding, such as, oceans and coastlines, large lakes and rivers.
Feeding mainly on fish, but are opportunistic feeders, feasting on animal carcasses, other birds and small animals.
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Bird Page Created By: Don Wallace. Photography: © 2011 Don Wallace
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Railroad Bridge Park, 2151 West Hendrickson
Road, PO Box 2450, Sequim, WA 98382
360-681-4076 - rivercenter@olympus.net |
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