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Bald Eagle

Birds
Bald Eagle

The bald eagle is a large bird of prey native to North America, easily identified as an adult by its white head and tail contrasting with a dark brown body, a plumage it does not acquire until four or five years of age. It lives near rivers, lakes and coastlines across most of the continent, feeding mainly on fish, which it catches by swooping low over the water and snatching prey with its talons, though it also scavenges and steals food from other birds. Bald eagles build some of the largest nests of any bird, reused and enlarged year after year in tall trees or on cliffs. Once endangered in the contiguous United States due to hunting and the pesticide DDT, the species recovered strongly after protective measures and a hunting ban and has been the national bird and symbol of the United States since 1782.

Facts
Classification
Diet
Detritivore or Scavenger 1
System (Realm)
Terrestrial 2
System (Realm)
Freshwater 2
System (Realm)
Marine 2
Relationship to People
Hunted or Fished 3
Living or Extinct
Yes 4
Comparison
NatureServe Rank
G5 Secure 5
CITES Appendix
Appendix II 4
CITES Appendix
Not Listed 6
Identification
Distinguishing Appearance
A large raptor with dark brown body plumage contrasting a white head and tail, a large hooked yellow beak, and yellow feet with large talons. 1
Scientific Name
Haliaeetus leucocephalus 4
Conservation Status
Least Concern 7
Connections

Child Taxon Of

Accipitriformes, Taxa
Source Catalogue of Life

In Biome

Desert, Biomes
Source Wikipedia: Bald Eagle
Estuary, Biomes
Source Wikipedia: Bald Eagle
Grassland, Biomes
Source Wikipedia: Bald Eagle
Lake, Biomes
Source Wikipedia: Bald Eagle
Source Wikipedia: Bald Eagle
Riparian Zone, Biomes
Source Wikipedia: Bald Eagle
River, Biomes
Source Wikipedia: Bald Eagle
Source Wikipedia: Bald Eagle
Tundra, Biomes
Source Wikipedia: Bald Eagle
Wetlands, Biomes
Source Wikipedia: Bald Eagle

In Ecosystem

Source Wikipedia: Bald Eagle
Source Wikipedia: Bald Eagle
In the Other Atlases

Found In

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Also in Geography Atlas: where this subject is found.

Sources
1. Bald Eagle (Wikipedia)
Description section
Quote, Description section
The plumage of an adult bald eagle is evenly dark brown with a white head and tail.
2. GBIF Species API
GBIF Species APIView the Source
3. Bald Eagle (Wikipedia)
measures such as banning the practice of hunting bald eagles ... slowed the declineView the Source
4. Wikidata: Bald Eagle
Wikidata
  • Wikidata Q127216, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)
  • Statements section, conservation status (P141)
    IUCN Red List conservation status (Wikidata property P141): least concern.
  • Wikidata Q127216 (P225 taxon name)
View the Source
5. NatureServe Explorer: Haliaeetus leucocephalus
NatureServe ExplorerGlobal rank (roundedGRank)
Quote, Global rank (roundedGRank)
"roundedGRank": "G5"
View the Source
6. Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of Zoology: Haliaeetus leucocephalus (Animal Diversity Web)
Animal Diversity Web, University of Michigan Museum of ZoologyConservation Status: CITES
Quote, Conservation Status: CITES
CITES No special status
View the Source
7. Wikipedia: Bald Eagle
Wikipedia
  • Infobox: status2
    CITES_A2
  • Infobox: status
    LC
  • In Ecosystem: Yellowstone, Habitat
    Trees used for nesting in the Greater Yellowstone area average 27 m (89 ft) high.
  • In Ecosystem: Sonoran Desert, Range
    Occupying varied habitats from the bayous of Louisiana to the Sonoran Desert and the eastern deciduous forests of Quebec and New England, northern birds are migratory, while southern birds are resident, remaining on their breeding territory all year.
  • In Biome: Desert, Range
    Occupying varied habitats from the bayous of Louisiana to the Sonoran Desert and the eastern deciduous forests of Quebec and New England, northern birds are migratory, while southern birds are resident, remaining on their breeding territory all year.
  • In Biome: Temperate Forest, Range
    Occupying varied habitats from the bayous of Louisiana to the Sonoran Desert and the eastern deciduous forests of Quebec and New England, northern birds are migratory, while southern birds are resident, remaining on their breeding territory all year.
  • In Biome: Lake, Habitat
    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.
  • In Biome: River, Habitat
    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.
  • In Biome: Wetlands, Habitat
    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.
  • In Biome: Grassland, Habitat
    In Florida, nesting habitats often consist of mangrove swamps, the shorelines of lakes and rivers, pinelands, seasonally flooded flatwoods, hardwood swamps, and open prairies and pastureland with scattered tall trees.
  • In Biome: Mangrove Forest, Habitat
    In Florida, nesting habitats often consist of mangrove swamps, the shorelines of lakes and rivers, pinelands, seasonally flooded flatwoods, hardwood swamps, and open prairies and pastureland with scattered tall trees.
  • In Biome: Riparian Zone, Habitat
    Wyoming eagles may inhabit habitat types ranging from large, old-growth stands of ponderosa pines (Pinus ponderosa) to narrow strips of riparian trees surrounded by rangeland.
  • In Biome: Estuary, Habitat
    However, bald eagles will occasionally nest in large estuaries or secluded groves within major cities, such as Hardtack Island on the Willamette River in Portland, Oregon, or John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge at Tinicum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which are surrounded by a great quantity of human activity.
  • In Biome: Tundra, Habitat
    Upland wintering habitats often consist of open habitats with concentrations of medium-sized mammals, such as prairies, meadows or tundra, or open forests with regular carrion access.
View the Source
Catalogue of Life
Species 2000 & ITIS Catalogue of LifeChild Taxon Of: AccipitriformesView the Source
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