American Bald Eagle
by Sonali Gangane
Title
American Bald Eagle
Artist
Sonali Gangane
Medium
Photograph - Digital Photography
Description
The Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus; hali = salt, aeetus = eagle, leuco = white, cephalis = head) is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known sub-species and forms a species pair with the White-tailed Eagle (Haliaeetus albicilla). Its range includes most of Canada and Alaska, all of the contiguous United States, and northern Mexico. It is found near large bodies of open water with an abundant food supply and old-growth trees for nesting.
The Bald Eagle is an opportunistic feeder which subsists mainly on fish, which it swoops down and snatches from the water with its talons. It builds the largest nest of any North American bird and the largest tree nests ever recorded for any animal species, up to 4 meters (13 ft) deep, 2.5 meters (8.2 ft) wide, and one metric ton (1.1 tons) in weight. Sexual maturity is attained at the age of four to five years.
Bald Eagles are not actually bald; the name derives from an older meaning of "white headed". The adult is mainly brown with a white head and tail. The sexes are identical in plumage, but females are larger than males. The beak is large and hooked. The plumage of the immature is brown.
The Bald Eagle is the national bird of the United States of America and appears on its Seal. In the late 20th century it was on the brink of extirpation in the continental United States. Populations recovered and the species was removed from the U.S. federal government's list of endangered species on July 12, 1995 and transferred to the list of threatened species. It was removed from the List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife in the Lower 48 States on June 28, 2007.
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Thanks for viewing. 2013©Sonali T. Gangane
Uploaded
April 20th, 2013
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Comments (22)
JOHN TELFER
Sonali, Fantastic photo of this American Bald Eagle, with such great details of the feathers layered. Excellent capture of the eagle's facial expression and the position you have caught him in. Fantastic wildlife photo, fav, voted, google and tweet promoted and selected as my Pay It Forward in the Wisconsin Flowers and Scenery group
Randy Rosenberger
Sonali, I love eagles and this beauty is so detailed and beautiful in its capture, that the feathers are awesome in their presentation. Love it! fave and vote