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Golden Eagle
last update: Apr 21, 2009 11:05 AM
Latin name: Aquila chrysaetos
Population: 250,000 individuals
Cites classified: Least Concern
Where found: Circumpolar from Northern Scandinavia and across Russia to Kamchatka and from central Alaska across to central Northwest and Yukon Territories and south to Southern Quebec and Labrador
Age/ life expectancy: 28 years on average
Wingspan: 190-225 cm
Length: 75-90 cm
Weight: 3.0-5.5 kg
Mating/Breeding: Golden Eagles are monogamous, and long-term pair bonds are typical. A pair may reuse its nest, adding more material each year. Both sexes help build the nest on a cliff ledge or in a large tree. Pairs may have two or more nest sites and alternate between sites from year to year. The nest is a bulky platform of sticks, lined with weeds, moss, and other fine material. Both members of the pair incubate the two eggs for 41 to 45 days. The female spends the first few weeks brooding the young, while the male brings food. Later, both adults bring food. The young fledge at 60 to 70 days.
Eggs: 1-3 (usually 2) cream eggs with heavy buff to dark brown markings
Hibernation: northern birds migrate south while southern birds, and some northern birds, remain in residence as long as the food supply is adequate
Hunting Habits: opportunistic hunter in air and on the ground
Feed on: mammals (mainly small mammals), birds, carrion, reptiles, fish, and amphibians
Predators: wolverines and grizzly bears prey on nestlings
Colour/Body: Golden Eagles are solid brown as adults, with golden highlights on their heads, the leading edges of their wings, and their legs. The juvenile has a white patch on each wing and white at the base of its tail. Both the juvenile and the adult have golden plumage at the napes of their necks. Golden Eagles are similar in size to Bald Eagles, but with smaller heads and bills. They have feathers down their legs to their toes.
Subspecies: Aquila chrysaetos– Eurasia except Iberian peninsula, east to western Siberia; A. c. canadensis– North America; A. c. daphanea– Southern Kazakhstan east to Manchuria and south-west China, also northern India and Pakistan; A. c. homeryi– Iberian peninsula and North Africa, east to Turkey and Iran; A. c. japonica– Japan and Korea; A. c. kamtschatica– Eastern Siberia, from the Altay to the Kamchatka Peninsula. Often included in A. c. canadensis.
Interesting Trivia:
- The Golden Eagle is the national emblem of Mexico.
- The Rough-legged Hawk, the Ferruginous Hawk, and the Golden Eagle are the only American hawks to have legs feathered all the way to the toes.
