North American Golden Eagle Description
The golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) has a wingspan up to seven feet and is distributed widely across the Northern Hemisphere. It is the largest member of the true eagle or Aquila genus and the most widely distributed eagle in the world. Golden eagles are powerful hunters that can dive at 150 miles an hour, seizing prey with their large talons. The golden eagle is the national bird of Mexico, Albania, Germany, Austria and Kazakhstan.
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Description
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The golden eagle is 30 to 41 inches long and has a wingspan of up to 78 inches. The adults are dark brown with pronounced golden feathers on the back of the neck. The legs and feet are almost completely covered in feathers. Young birds have white patches at the base of the tail and the undersides of the wings. The large talons are yellow and the beak is strongly hooked. The females can be as much as a third larger than the males.
Range
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Golden eagles are distributed throughout the holarctic, including northern Africa, Arabia, the Himalayas and Mexico. In the United States, the subspecies Aquila chrysaetos canadensis is present from northern Alaska down to northern Mexico. Some experts regard the North American subspecies and the Siberian subspecies Aquila chrysaetos kamtschatica to be the same. Those living in the far north of the species' range in the U.S. migrate south during the winter.
The species is most common on the west coast and limited in the east to a small population between Quebec and the Appalachian Mountains.
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Habitat
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Although widespread, the North American golden eagle prefers open country and is found in tundra, grasslands and open coniferous forests as well as upland plains and montane valleys. Nesting takes place on secluded and inaccessible cliff ledges in remote and mountainous country and also in very large trees. Hunting and habitat pressure have pushed golden eagle populations into uninhabited and remote areas across the United States and they are now most common in upland areas.
Behavior
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Golden eagles hunt from the air and take small mammals such as jackrabbits and rodents, although they have also been seen taking snakes and birds and far larger animals such as young deer. They will also feed on carrion when it is available. The call is sharp and harsh and can resemble a dog's bark.
Pairs defend a territory that can be as large as 60 square miles. Nests, known as eyries, are made of sticks and branches and are built up over many years by breeding pairs. Females lay up to two eggs and do most of the incubating, which takes about 50 days. The young leave the nest 75 days after hatching.
Conservation
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In the U.S. the golden eagle is protected by the federal Bald Eagle Protection
Act of 1962. The species is considered endangered in Maine, New Hampshire and New York (and extirpated in other northeastern states) and the population in coastal southern California has declined rapidly. The main threats are poaching, habitat destruction, egg collection and collisions with power lines.
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References
- Photo Credit Golden eagle image by MAXFX from Fotolia.com
