EAGLE

EAGLE

v 8.Facts About Bald Eagles

Bald eagles ar powerful symbols of America—but there’s a full heap a lot of to those kinky birds.

1. YOUNG BALD EAGLES AREN'T BALD.

So obviously adult bald eagles aren't really bald, either—their heads have bright white plumage that contrasts with their dark body feathers, giving them a "bald" look. But young bald eagles have mostly brown heads. In fact, for the primary four or 5 years of their lives, they move through a complicated series of different plumage patterns; in their second year, for instance, they have white bellies.

2. BALD EAGLES thusUND SO SILLY THAT HOLLYWOOD DUBS OVER THEIR VOICES.

It's a scene you’ve most likely seen infinite times in movies and on TV: Associate in Nursing eagle flies overhead and emits a rough, piercing scream. It's a classic symbol of wilderness and adventure. The only problem? Bald eagles don't make that sound.

Instead, they emit a kind of high-pitched giggle or a weak scream. These noises are so unimpressive that Hollywood sound editors often dub over bald eagle calls with far more impressive sounds: the piercing, earthy screams of a smaller bird, the red-tailed hawk. If you were a lover of The Colbert Report, you might remember the show's iconic CGI eagle from the opener—it, too, is making that red-tailed hawk cry. Listen for yourself and judge World Health Organization sounds a lot of spectacular.

3. THEY EAT TRASH AND STOLEN FOOD.

Picture an impressive American eagle swooping low over a lake and catching a fish in its powerful claws. Yes, bald eagles eat tons of fish—but they do not invariably catch them themselves. They've formed the art of stealing fish from different birds like ospreys, chasing them down until they drop their prey.

Bald eagles will snack on gulls, ducks, rabbits, crabs, amphibians, and more. They'll scavenge in dumpsters, kill waste from fish process plants, and even gorge on carrion (dead, decaying animals).

4. BALD EAGLES USUALLY MATE FOR LIFE ...

Trash and carrion aside, they're pretty romantic animals. Bald eagles tend to try up for all times, and that they share parenting duties: The male and also the feminine act incubating the eggs, and they both feed their young.

5. … AND THEY LIVE PRETTY LONG LIVES.Those romantic partnerships are even more impressive because bald eagles can survive for decades. In 2015, a wild eagle in Henrietta, New York, died at the record age of 38. Considering that these birds try up at four or five years aged, that's a lot of Valentine's Days.

5. THEY HOLD THE RECORD FOR the most important nest.

On average, eagle nests area unit 2-4 feet deep and 4-5 feet wide. But one pair of eagles near St. Petersburg, Florida, earned the Guinness record for largest bird’s nest: twenty feet deep and nine.5 feet wide. The nest weighed over two tons.

6. TO IDENTIFY THEM, LOOK AT THE WINGS.

People usually get excited a couple of huge soaring bird Associate in Nursingd yell "It's an eagle!” simply before it swoops nearer and … oops, it is a vulture. Here's a handy identification tip. Bald eagles typically soar with their wings virtually flat. On the opposite hand, the turkey vulture—another dark, soaring bird—holds its wings up in a shallow V shape called a dihedral. A lot of huge hawks conjointly soar with slightly raised wings.

7.THEIR EYES ARE AMAZING. What if you could close your eyes and still see? Besides the standard try of eyelids, bald eagles have a see-through eyelid called a nictitating membrane. They can close this membrane to protect their eyes while their main eyelids remain open. The membrane conjointly helps moisten and clean their eyes.

Eagles even have swindler vision than individuals, and their field of vision is wider. Plus, they can see ultraviolet light. Both of these things mean the expression "eagle eye" is spot-on.

8.THEY CAN SWIM … SORT OF.

There area unit many videos online—like the one above—that show a eagle swimming within the ocean, rowing itself to shore with its huge wings. Eagles have hollow bones and downy down, so they can float pretty well. But why swim instead of soar? Sometimes, Associate in Nursing eagle can swoop down Associate in Nursingd grab an particularly weighty fish, then paddle it to shore to eat.

Note that the announcer within the video higher than says that the eagle's talons ar "locked" on a fish that is too serious to hold. In fact, those lockable talons area unit Associate in Nursing urban legend.