Though it may be North American, the bald eagle has seven close relatives that are found throughout the world. They all belong to the genus Haliaeetus , which comes—pretty unimaginatively—from the Latin words for "sea" and "eagle. It represents several countries; for example, it's the national symbol of Zambia, and graces the South Sudanese , Malawian , and Namibian coats of arms.
It seems too weird to be true: While flying, bald eagles sometimes grab each other's feet and spin while plummeting to the earth. Scientists aren't sure why they do this—perhaps it's a courtship ritual or a territorial battle.
Usually, the pair will separate before hitting the ground as seen in this remarkable set of photographs. But sometimes they hold tight and don't let go. These two male bald eagles locked talons and hit the ground with their feet still connected. One subsequently escaped and the other was treated for talon wounds. What if you could close your eyes and still see?
Besides the usual pair 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 also helps moisten and clean their eyes. Eagles also have sharper vision than people, and their field of vision is wider.
Plus, they can see ultraviolet light. Both of those things mean the expression "eagle eye" is spot-on. If you're a bald eagle that nests in northern Canada, you'll probably head south for the winter to avoid the punishing cold. Many eagles fly south for the winter and return north for the summer—as do plenty of other bird species and retired Canadians.
But not all bald eagles migrate. Some of them, including individuals in New England and Canada's Maritime provinces, stick around all year. Whether or not a bird migrates depends on how old it is and how much food is available.
There are several videos online—like the one above—that show a bald eagle swimming in the sea, rowing itself to shore with its huge wings. Eagles have hollow bones and fluffy down, so they can float pretty well.
But why swim instead of soar? Sometimes, an eagle will swoop down and grab an especially weighty fish, then paddle it to shore to eat. Note that the announcer in the video above says that the eagle's talons are "locked" on a fish that's too heavy to carry. In fact, those lockable talons are an urban legend. BY Rosemary Mosco. A red-tailed hawk's screech is usually dubbed over the bald eagle's weaker scream.
Eagle eyes are angled 30 degrees away from centre of the face, which gives eagles a greater field of view. Eagles can see five basic colours to our three, and can detect UV light. Cones are light detecting cells that are sensitive to colour.
One of the reasons that eagles have better vision than humans is because their retinas, a layer at the back of the eyeball, have more cones. We have , cones per square millimetre, whereas eagles have one million. Eagles are monogamous, so generally mate for life. They have strong site fidelity, so a mating pair tend to reuse the same nest year after year.
Nests, composed of sticks, vegetation, and downy feathers, are built by both males and females. Location of the nest varies with species.
Bald eagles for example, most likely nest in tall trees whereas as golden eagles prefer cliff faces or more open areas. The number of eggs laid will depend upon species, but many eagles lay between one and three eggs; four egg clutches do occur, but they are rare.
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