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Bald Eagle
Bald Eagle
Species: Haliaeetus leucocephalus
What Defenders Is Doing to Help Bald Eagles
Where Bald Eagles Live
Video
Threats
Unique to North America, Bald Eagles live in coastal and lake areas from Baja California and Florida north to Newfoundland and Alaska. Within this geographical span, they are nearly always found near water, along rivers, lakes or the coast and coastal marshes, reservoirs and large lakes. They also pass over mountains and plains during migration. The northern and interior populations may migrate to open water in the winter months.
Now that the bald eagle is no longer on the Endangered Species list, we must ensure it is adequately protected against reckless development and other threats that can disturb eagles and affect their survival. Defenders is currently analyzing the Fish and Wildlife Services management guidelines, the permit proposal and post-delisting monitoring plan to determine if they will adequately protect bald eagles.
Diet
Bald eagles were very negatively affected by DDT, a pesticide that was not banned in the US until 1972 though its dangers were known in the early 1960s. It wasn’t lethal to the bald eagles themselves, but the DDT they ingested weakened the shells of their eggs to the point where the eggs cracked under the weight of an adult eagle.
The bald eagle is not picky about how it gets its food. It will eat carrion, steal fish from other birds or hunt for its own. Their most important non-carrion food is fish, which they catch by swooping down and grabbing fish that are near the surface of the lake or stream. Eagles primarily eat fish, carrion, smaller birds and rodents. Eagles are also known to prey on large birds and large fish.