Bald Eagle

# 4 Seed

Describe how your organism is adapted to survive in its environment (this may include camouflage, hunting, movement or something else!)

Bald Eagles are very keen hunters and spend a lot of time soaring the skies looking for food to hunt. Bald eagles have 4 to 8 times better vision than humans, this means they can easily spot prey far from ground. Bald eagles have specially adapted feet and talons to help them out. A series of bumps on the bottom of their feet (spicules ) help them hold on to their prey during flight. They also have razor-sharp talons that they use to grab their prey, kill it and tear into its flesh. Bald eagles have several useful adaptations to help them devour their prey. In addition to talons, they use their sharp, pointed beaks to tear into and eat their meals. They primarily eat fish although also some birds, mammals and reptiles and their beaks are tough enough to tear and eat the flesh of larger prey bite by bite. When they catch a smaller dinner, they'll eat it in one sitting, but they'll regurgitate its bones and other indigestible parts. Rather than flying and striking quickly, like other birds of prey, eagles soar slowly above the ground, utilizing natural air currents. Extremely large wingspans sometimes more than 7 1/2 feet allow them to easily catch the currents and drift through the air. This conserves a lot of energy, meaning they can stay up in the air looking for prey for a longer amount of time before tiring.

Describe the relative abundance of your organism...is it threatened? Endangered? Extirpated from an area?

The bald eagle was the national symbol for The United States of America and yet the population nearly got wiped out there. For many decades, bald eagles were hunted for sport and for the "protection" of fishing grounds. Pesticides like DDT also wreaked havoc on eagles and other birds. These chemicals collect in fish, which make up most of the eagle's diet. They weaken the bird's eggshells and severely limited their ability to reproduce. Since DDT use was heavily restricted in 1972, eagle numbers have rebounded significantly and have been aided by reintroduction programs. The result is a wildlife success story—the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service has upgraded the birds from endangered to least concern. As you can see from the map the red part shows where the bald eagles breed and the growing population of the bald eagles in north America.

Describe the niche of your organism?

The Bald eagle is a generalist it can survive in a large amount of environments, they are found all over america, near coasts, rivers, lakes and other bodies of water that have an abundance of fish. The bald eagle is not a picky eater but it prefers fish but will also prey on birds and small mammals. In addition to being a successful hunter, the species will also steal prey from other predatory birds and mammals.Bald eagles are "fish eagles." They are in this classification because their main food source is fish. They will also eat smaller birds, other bird's eggs and small animals like rabbits, reptiles, amphibians and crabs. Since bald eagles only eat meat, this makes them carnivores. The bald eagle has no predators, although Owls, squirrels and raccoons sometimes attack there nests and eat there eggs. Bald eagles make massive nests they are territorial birds. Many bald eagles migrate but not all do.

Is your organism a GENERALIST (having a broad niche) or a SPECIALIST (having a narrow niche)? Provide a map that illustrates you know the difference between these two terms?

Generalists are species that can thrive in many different environments and situations, specialist on the other hand can only survive in certain environments that they have evolved to handle. Based on this criteria the bald eagle is a generalist, it can thrive in a large amount of environments, this is evident by the eagle population being spread out of a wide area. Also the bald eagle is not a very picky eater, the bald eagle has no predators, its very dominant.

How has genetic variation enabled your organism to survive in its environment?

Genetic variation is a term used to describe the variation in the DNA sequence in each of our genomes. The bald eagles genes are pretty perfect, It hasn't had a need to mutate it's genes in order to survive in it's niche.

Describe your organism’s ability to adapt to changes in the environment (Describe what ‘change’ is ACTUALLY occurring in the environment!). Is it human caused? Natural? Be specific!

Bald eagles have specially adapted feet and talons to help them out. A series of bumps on the bottom of their feet are known as spicules to help them hold on to their prey during flight. They also have razor sharp talons that they use to grab their prey, kill it and tear into its flesh.They also have excellent site to see there food and they have cured beaks to skin there prey easier.

Describe any “defenses” your organism may have against predators and/or how your organism attacks its prey/gets its food?

Bald eagles use their long, sharp claws to defend themselves. Bald eagles do not have any animal predators. Osprey, a large bird, may try to attack them, but the eagle will scare them away. Humans can destroy bald eagles habitats and kill them.

(NOTE: you cannot reuse a fact from somewhere else in this document) ?

Predation is the hunting of other animals. Bald eagles prey on waterfowl and small mammals like squirrel, prairie dogs, raccoon, and rabbit. Bald eagles are opportunistic predators, meaning that in addition to hunting for live prey, they will steal from other animals. They also eat carrion, the decaying flesh of dead animals, such as a deer hit by a car. Carrion is especially important in winter when other foods are not easily found. Eagles are "birds of prey," which means they hunt for their food.

What efforts are humans undertaking to help preserve diversity of your species?

US humans are trying to get rid of DDT, by making by laws and restrictions.

Describe any example of your organism participating in a symbiotic relationship. This includes: -mutualism-parasitism-commensalism

Symbiosis is a relationship between two or more organisms that live closely together. A mutual relationship is when both benefit from each others actions. An example of mutual relationship with Bald Eagles could be when farmers plant wheat in a field, which attracts prey. The Bald Eagles eat the prey that are in the field so the Bald Eagle receives food and the farmer does not have animals in their field. A parasitism relationship is when one benefits and the other organism is harmed. An example of parasitism with a Bald Eagle is the Helminth parasite. It lives on Bald Eagles, receiving nourishment while disrupting nutrient absorption. A commensalistic relationship is when one organism benefits but the other organism is not effected at all. An example of a commensalistic relationship with a Bald Eagle could be when Bald Eagle make their nests in Acacia trees. The birds are benefitted by the nest but the Acacia trees are not affected.

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