Bald eagles are not really bald! They get their name from the word 'piebald' which refers to their light and dark coloured feathers.

Although there are over 60 types of eagles in the world, the bald eagle can only be found in North America. It is the symbol of the United States because it stands for freedom, strength and courage. 

There are over 316,000 bald eagles in the United States alone. Once, they were endangered because of hunting and pollution. But since laws were made to protect them, their numbers have increased. 

bald - no hair (or feathers)

courage - bravery

increased - gone up

Bald eagles can live for 20-30 years. 

They are very large raptors. Females are a bit bigger than males. They can be 3 feet (1m) long and their wingspan can be 8 ft (2.4 m) across!  However, they are not very heavy, just 6-9 lbs (2.7-4 kg) for males and 10-15lbs(4.5-6.8 kg) for females. 

Bald eagles are known for their brown body and wings, white head and tail and for their hooked yellow beak. Their feet are also yellow and have very sharp talons (claws).

They can fly very high - over 10,000 feet (3,048m) high. They fly high up so they can look for prey  Naturally, they must have excellent eyesight. They can see fish up to 1 mile (1.6km) away. When they dive down, they can go very fast. Up to 100 miles (161 km) an hour! 

raptors- a bird that eats other animals

hooked - having a hook shape, like the letter 'C'

talons - very large, hooked claws

Bald eagles mostly hunt for fish but will also eat small animals such as small birds and mice. They will also eat carrion or steal food from other birds.

carrion - dead animals

Bald eagles are solitary animals, but they are monogamous meaning the mothers and fathers will return to each other each year to have more babies

They lay 2 or 3 eggs in the winter or spring which take 35 days to hatch. The eggs and babies are safe high up in the nest with the mother and father eagle close by.

The babies, called eaglets, are born light grey in colour. Later, they will become brown. Then, when they are 4-5 years old, they will develop white heads and tails.

Eagle parents both take care of the chicks. For about 2.5 months, they bring food back to the hungry babies. After about 12 weeks, the chicks will start to learn to fly but they will stay close by the nest. The parents will continue to feed them sometimes, until they are old enough to take care of themselves. Then, the young eagles will live on their own until they are about 5 years old and are ready to make chicks of their own!

solitary: live alone

monogamous: having one partner 

hatch: open

chicks: baby bird