US symbol - bald eagle

The bald eagle is the only representative of the hawk family living exclusively in North America. Most often it can be found on the cold expanse of Alaska.

This bird is a symbol of the USA, according to the decision taken by the Continental Congress in the summer of 1872, and its image is placed on the State Emblem of the country. Oddly enough, the eagle's rival in this matter was a wild turkey, for which President Franklin himself spoke, because he considered the turkey a "noble bird", and the eagle-insolent, thievish and cowardly.

Description

The bald eagle is easily recognizable by its appearance: it has a snow-white head, a tail and the upper part of the neck, and the rest of the plumage is of contrasting dark brown color. Sometimes this bird is called a bald eagle, because from a distance its white top looks like a bald spot.

In length, the body of the sea eagle reaches about 80 cm, the wingspan - up to two meters, weight - from 4 kg to 5.5 kg. In this case, females are always larger than males.

Lifestyle

Orlans are professional anglers, so they prefer to settle closer to the ocean and large freshwater reservoirs. They have powerful paws and huge hooked claws, which allow you to firmly hold even the slippery fish. The main diet of these birds are fish, crustaceans, waterfowl, reptiles, small rodents. Contrary to popular belief, they do not kill domestic animals, and only occasionally they can profit by a fallen lamb.

The American eagle forms a married couple for life. And only after the death of a partner can a search for a new one. A pair of eagles chooses the tallest tree and lays an impressive nest on it. Over the years it is completed and as a result in diameter can exceed 3 meters.

These birds love solitude and jealously guard their territory. The nearest relatives should be no less than 1200 meters, otherwise the skirmishes will become inevitable.

Reproduction

Female Eagle lays more often 2 eggs, of which after 5 weeks hatching gray chicks. Their mother warms and protects, and the father procures food. It often happens that a stronger chick hammers a weak chick, and he is saved at the far edge of the nest. The mother forgets about him, feeds a stronger and more screaming son, and a weak baby dies of hunger and cold.

When the chicks turn 1.5 months old, they begin to jump in the nest from branch to branch, and a month later they try to make their first flight. At first they are afraid to distance themselves from their parents, but in time they feel more confident and fly away into an independent life.

At the age of 4-6 years the bald eagle becomes sexually mature and creates its own family. They live on average 12-13 years, but there are also twenty to thirty-year olds.

Population problems

When these birds became a symbol of the United States, their numbers were enormous - about 75,000 individuals. But by the beginning of the 40s of the 20th century the population had decreased so much that the authorities of the country were forced to pass a number of laws to protect this species. It was forbidden to kill, sell and keep the eagles without special permission. And from the owner of the pen or any other part of this species of birds, imposing fines were charged. However, for the Indians, who used feathers to decorate their clothes, an exception was made.

The problem of extinction of bald eagles was caused by a number of factors: water pollution, displacement from natural habitats, mass destruction by farmers, extensive use of the DDT pesticide. In particular, this pesticide poisoned the fish that the eagles fed, thus penetrating the body of birds. Because of this, the eggs of the eagles significantly thickened the shell, and the chicks could not pierce it to hatch. DDT was officially banned in 1972.

Many measures were taken to save birds from extinction. In addition to the ban on the use of DDT and other poisonous substances, the breeding of chicks in captivity began. The maturing babies were released, they were "adopted" by a pair of adult birds.

In places where the eagles became very rare, biologists built artificial nests, settled the chicks, fed them and looked after them until they became independent.

Thanks to the common efforts the bald eagle again became quite common. Now there are about 50 000 individuals. In history, this is the first example, when the population managed to restore people's efforts.