Bald Eagle

Haliaeetus leucocephalus

Bald Eagle

“ The eagle has no fear of adversity. We need to be like the eagle and have a fearless spirit of a conqueror! ”

– Joyce Meyer

Scientific Taxonomy & Character Information

Domain: Eukaryota

Kingdom: Animalia

Phylum: Chordata

Class: Reptilia

Order: Accipitriformes

Family: Accipitridae

Genus: Haliaeetus

Species: Haliaeetus leucocephalus

Descendant: sea eagles

Named by: Carl Linnaeus

Year Published: 1758

Size: 2.5 to 3 feet (0.7 to 0.9 meters) in height, wingspan of 6.5 feet (two meters), 90 cm (36 inches) in length, 3 – 6.3 kg in weight

Lifespan: 20-30 years

Type: 

Title: 

Pantheon: Terran/Gaian

Time Period: Pleistocene - Holocene

Alignment: Neutral

Threat Level: ★★★★

Diet: Carnivorous

Elements: Air

Inflicts: Bleeding

Casualties: n/a

Based On: itself

Conservation Status: Least Concern (LC) – IUCN Red List 

The Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) is a bird of prey and a sea eagle found in North America to Ireland.

Etymology

Bald in the English name is from the older usage meaning "white" rather than "hairless", referring to the white head and tail feathers and their contrast with the darker body, as in piebald.

Physical Appearance

The moniker "bald eagle" comes from an earlier meaning of the word, "white headed," although the birds are not literally bald. The adult has a white head and tail and is otherwise brown in color. The feathers of the two sexes are identical, however females are roughly 25% larger than males. The hooked, big golden beak is yellow. The immature's feathers are brown.


An adult bald eagle's feathers are uniformly dark brown with a white head and tail. The tail has a small wedge form and is moderately lengthy. Males and females have identical colour in their plumage, however the species exhibits sexual dimorphism since females are 25% larger than males. Bright yellow can be seen on the beak, feet, and irises. The toes are small and strong with huge talons, and the legs are without feathers. While the prey is being held immobile by the front toes, the highly developed talon of the hind toe is used to puncture the critical parts of the prey. The beak has a yellow cere and is big and hooked.


The bald eagle has sometimes been considered the largest true raptor (accipitrid) in North America. The only larger species of raptor-like bird is the California condor (Gymnogyps californianus), a New World vulture which today is not generally considered a taxonomic ally of true accipitrids. The body length of a bald eagle ranges from 70 to 102 cm (28 to 40 in). As a result, an eagle's body is much, much smaller than that of a typical adult human. A 2 12 to 3-year-old youngster is roughly the same height as a bald eagle perched on a branch.

Abilities

They are frequent visitors to nearby lakes and rivers, where they will attempt to dive and grab fishes out of the water. They are also fond of attacking rabbits and other rodents in the same way. The eagle hunts fish by swooping down over the water and grabbing the fish with its talons. By grasping the fish in one claw and shredding the flesh with the other, they consume food. Sea Eagles can grab fish because of spicules, structures on their toes.

Ecology

Lifespan

Bald eagles may live 15 to 25 years in the wild, longer in captivity. Sexual maturity is reached at four to five years of age.


Diet

The osprey has the same adaptability. Attacks on flying bird prey have occasionally been reported, with attacks and deaths of animals up to the size of Canada geese. According to estimates, a bald eagle's grasping force (pounds per square inch) is ten times more than a person's. Bald eagles can hoist fish that are at least as much as their own weight and soar with them, but if the fish is too big, the eagle may be dragged into the water. Some eagles drown or pass away from hypothermia, though they may swim to safety and in some cases drag their catch to the shore while they do so.

Behavior

The call consists of weak staccato, chirping whistles, kleek kik ik ik ik, somewhat similar in cadence to a gull's call. The calls of young birds tend to be more harsh and shrill than those of adults. Eagles are neutral animals, and can attack when provoked.

Distribution and Habitat

This species breeds in Canada, USA, Mexico, and the French island territories of Saint Pierre and Miquelon. It is considered a vagrant in Belize, Bermuda, Ireland, Puerto Rico, and the US Virgin Islands. The majority of bald eagles in Canada are found along the British Columbia coast while large populations are found in the forests of Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario. Bald eagles also congregate in certain locations in winter. From November until February, one to two thousand birds winter in Squamish, British Columbia, about halfway between Vancouver and Whistler. The birds primarily gather along the Squamish and Cheakamus Rivers, attracted by the salmon spawning in the area. The bald eagle occurs during its breeding season in virtually any kind of American wetland habitat such as seacoasts, rivers, large lakes or marshes or other large bodies of open water with an abundance of fish.


Tamed

With fish oil or gilded salmon meat, bald eagles can be attracted and domesticated. Like many other beasts, a domesticated bald eagle can be ordered to stay, follow, or wander. They can also be trained for falconry and trained to fly like unmanned aerial vehicles.

Lore

Project Pashneia, a scientific project by the Terran branch of Deities to construct any creatures, monsters, or humans in terms of their own, found that there were relatively few animals without the aurorium neurotransmitter on their brains and developed the bald eagle during the year 30000 BCE.


The bald eagle is the national bird of the United States and appears on its seal. In the late 20th century, it was on the brink of extinction in the contiguous United States. However, conservation efforts have led to its recovery, and it was removed from the endangered species list in 2007. On the blue field on the dexter side is the North American bald eagle of the United States, and on the red field on the sinister side is the lion of the coat of arms of the Kingdom of León of Spain, both representing the country's colonial past, the Philippines itself.

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