Quick Facts
- Type
- Bird
- Size
- 70–100 cm body; up to 2.3 m wingspan
- Weight
- 3–6.3 kg
- Habitat
- Coasts, lakes, and rivers of North America
- Diet
- Mainly fish, plus birds, mammals, and carrion
- Active Time
- Active by day (diurnal)
- Lifespan
- 20–30 years in the wild
Field Notes
- Bald eagles build huge nests, some weighing a ton and reused for years.
- They are not bald; 'bald' comes from an old word meaning white-headed.
- Their eyesight is several times sharper than a human's, spotting fish from high up.
About the Bald Eagle
The bald eagle is a large bird of prey native to North America and the national bird of the United States. Adults are unmistakable, with a dark brown body, bright white head and tail, and a massive hooked yellow beak. Powerful and far-sighted, eagles hunt mainly fish, snatching them from the water with their talons, but they also scavenge and steal prey. They build some of the largest nests of any bird, reusing them for years. After near-extinction from the pesticide DDT, the species has strongly recovered.
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Or spin for another random animal on the explorer, or browse all species in the full directory.