A bird with a white head, like an eagle? It's a bald eagle!

The bald eagle is a fairly large bird with a white head, similar to an eagle. Orlan is a predator. This representative of the Hawk family lives in North America. In the USA, this freedom-loving bird is one of the national symbols. The stylized image of the bald eagle is decorated with the US coat of arms, minted on many coins.

What is this bird of prey with a white head like an eagle?

Like eagles, these large feathered predators hover above the ground, making rare flaps. And the size of this bird with a white head is similar to the eagle: the average body length of the male reaches 81 cm, and the wings in the span are two meters (for comparison, it should be noted that the length of the body at the eagle is 75-88 cm, and the wingspan is slightly larger than Eagles - 2.4 m). Female eagles are usually somewhat larger than males: the ratio of their weight is 4.1 kg: 5.4 kg. And a hook-shaped beak, bent down at the end, this bird with a white head is like an eagle, and many of its habits. Even the eagle nests, like an eagle, on tall trees or rocks, as it hovers in the air for a long time, looking for prey, then attacks small animals that are carried away in claws to a secluded place or nest to feed offspring. Precisely in order to pierce the victim and deftly cling to it, keeping it in the air on the fly, predators have strongly developed claws located on the back toes of the paws. Sometimes both species of these predators feed on carrion, and often look out for prey from above, settling on the rock or the top of a huge tree. But still, most often you can see the beautiful planning flight of these fearless proud birds.

Distinctive features of bald eagles

1. Plumage

If the eagle has plumage of almost the same color - gray or brown, then the eagle is a black bird with a white head. The upper part of the neck and the wedge-shaped tail are white in the bald eagle . There are also differences in the feathering of the legs: the eagles have their paws completely, almost to their fingers, covered with feathers, and in the eagles - only half.

2. Eyebrows

Distinguish eagles outgrowths, located above the eyebrows. Overgrown with feathers, they create the appearance of a formidable, frowning expression.

3. Interestingly, the voice range of the bald eagle is quite wide: it sometimes has a piercingly high whistle resembling "kvik-kick-kick-kick" sounds, and sometimes they seem to croak hoarsely, vaguely saying the "p" sound. Bald eagles prefer to live closer to the reservoirs where many fish are found, since they sometimes want to diversify their diet and a fairly large fry.

4. It is known that earlier bald eagles were also common in the territory of Russia, mainly they lived on the coast of the island of Bering. The shoals of salmon fish going to spawn attracted them, being an easy and nutritious prey.

Subspecies of the bald eagle

1. The southern subspecies of the bald eagle, Leucocephalus, are smaller, with a wing length of up to 53 centimeters in females and 57.6 centimeters in males. They dwell in the southern part of North America to about 38 degrees north latitude.
2. Northern subspecies of bald eagle, Washingtoniensis is a large bird with a white head. In females of the northern subspecies, the wing length can be as much as 59 centimeters (on average 6 centimeters more than their southern counterparts), and males can have a wing with a length of 66 centimeters. These birds can be found on the mainland north of the 38th parallel.