The bald eagle is the only representative of the hawk family that lives exclusively in North America. Most often it can be found in the cold expanses of Alaska.
This bird is a symbol of the United States, according to a decision taken by the Continental Congress in the summer of the distant 1872, and its image is placed on the State Emblem of the country. Oddly enough, the rival of the eagle in this matter was a wild turkey, for which President Franklin himself advocated, since he considered the turkey “a noble bird”, and the eagle was arrogant, thieving and cowardly.
Description
The bald eagle is easily recognized by its appearance: it has a snow-white head, tail and upper neck, and the rest of the plumage is of a contrasting dark brown color. Sometimes this bird is called a bald eagle, because from a distance its white crown looks like a bald head.
In length, the body of an eagle reaches about 80 cm, wingspan - up to two meters, weight - from 4 kg to 5.5 kg. Moreover, females are always larger than males.
Lifestyle
Eagles are professional fishers, so they prefer to settle closer to the ocean and large freshwater bodies. They have powerful paws and huge hooked claws that can hold even the most slippery fish firmly. 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 can they profit from a fallen lamb.
The American eagle forms a couple for life alone. And only after the death of a partner is it possible to search for a new one. A pair of eagles selects the tallest tree and winds a nest of impressive size on it. Over the years, it is being completed and as a result, in diameter can exceed 3 meters.
These birds love solitude and zealously guard their territory. The nearest relatives should be at least 1200 meters, otherwise skirmishes will become inevitable.
Breeding
The female eagle most often lays 2 eggs, of which gray chicks hatch after 5 weeks. Their mother warms and protects, and the father obtains food. It often happens that a stronger chick slaughters a weak one, and he chases himself at the far edge of the nest. Mother forgets about him, feeds a stronger and more loud offspring, and a weak baby dies of hunger and cold.
When the chicks turn one and a half months old, they begin to jump in the nest from branch to branch, and after another month try to make their first flight. At first they are afraid to move away from their parents, but over 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 an average of 12-13 years, but there are also twenty-thirty years old centenarians.
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 country's authorities were forced to adopt a number of laws to protect this species. It was forbidden to kill, sell and hold eagles without special permission. And with the owner of a feather or any other part of this species of birds imposed impressive fines. However, an exception was made for Indians who used feathers to decorate their clothes.
A number of factors led to the extinction of bald eagles: water pollution, crowding out of natural habitats, mass destruction by farmers, and the extensive use of DDT pesticide. In particular, this pesticide poisoned the fish that the eagles fed on, thus penetrating the birds. Because of this, the shells of the eagles' eggs significantly thickened, and the chicks could not break through to hatch. The use of DDT was officially banned in 1972.
Many measures have been taken to save the birds from extinction. In addition to the ban on the use of DDT and other toxic substances, the removal of captive chicks began. The grown up children were released, they were "adopted" by pairs of adult birds.
In places where eagles became very rare, biologists built artificial nests, settled chicks there, fed and looked after them until they became independent.
Thanks to the common efforts, the bald eagle has again become a fairly common species. Now there are about 50,000 individuals. This is the first example in history when the population was restored by the efforts of people.