There are different types of eagles, each with their own distinct features and behaviors, some of these are unique, interesting, and even funny. So, In this post, we’ve created a list of 40 facts about eagles based on research conducted on a variety of eagles from all around the world.
Let’s start the facts about eagles that will drive you crazy enough to share them with your friend.
Table of Contents
40 Amazing Facts About Eagle
1.Bald eagles force other birds to drop their food in the mid air
Bald eagles harass other birds such as seabirds, osprey to drop their food that is usually a fish in the mid-air that is later caught by bald eagle to eat. These bald eagles love fish so much that sometimes snatch the fishes caught by humans during fishing.
2.Eagles can manage to live without food for weeks together
Eagles are known to eat a wide variety of foods but in the time of scarcity they can live without foods for weeks together. Whatsoever, If the food is not available they will not attempt to eat the dead, especially the babies that can’t tolerate the starvation start to kill each other in order to eat them fresh, that is baby eagle murders its weaker sibling for food.
3.Eaglets kill their brothers in a nest for food
The chicks of eagles are called eaglets and in a nest, with more than one eaglet the stronger eaglet will kill the weaker eaglet to make food supply served to it rather than sharing with its eaglets. This siblicide act happens in case there is less or no or even delayed nutrition supply occurs. However, for this reason, the parent eagles try to supply more food to their eaglets to make sure siblicide does not occur.
4.Eagles are carnivorous, that is they only eat fresh meat
Eagles eat a wide range of foods, that all make them carnivorous in diets such as fish, crab, other birds, amphibians and reptiles like snakes. For example, The Madagascar Serpent Eagle feeds on chameleons, geckos, tree frogs, bats, insects, and few snakes.
5.Eagles babies grow faster
The babies of eagles are known as eaglets that require only about 12 week or 84 days to reach maturity. However, they need so much food while growing, if eaglets don’t get enough food they can kill their brothers for food.
6.Eagles have strong legs with sharp talons
This powerful grip of the eagle allows them to lift heavier prey and also fight with other raptors, think once next time before you call your pet eagle from the zoo to land on your bare hands because their grips are very strong and are equipped with sharp talons.
7.Like other birds Eagles don’t sleep in the nests
Eagles sleep on the branches. However, they use their nest for egg laying, brooding, rising their chicks, and feeding them. Most of the time they perch on a branch in order to sleep.
8.Eagles can fly higher altitudes than other birds
An eagle can easily attain a high height of 10,000-15,000 feet and remain there for longer periods of time than any other species. If thermals are available, they can use them efficiently for fast travel.
9.Eagles build their nest at higher altitudes
The nest height of the eagle is at great altitudes, For example, The Golden Eagle, usually builds their nests on top of cliffs. Most eagles prefer to build their nest at very height locations like in tall trees or cliffs. The eagle can use nests for longer durations, eagles nests are bigger and solid due to the twigs and thorns deposition by the eagles. The Bald Eagle’s nest is much larger in size and weight, For example, The Bald Eagle’s nest is around 13 feet deep, 8.2 feet wide and it can weigh 1 tonne.
10.Eagles are used as symbols across the world
From the past human civilization, humans consider and represent the eagle as a sign of freedom, strength, and prosperity. They are considered as a solar symbol and are linked to all-sky gods, It signifies inspiration, victory, longevity, speed, pride, father, and royalty.
11.Harpy Eagle is the largest scary looking eagle in the world
The harpy eagle, the New Guinea harpy eagle or the Papuan harpy eagle is a type of eagle that can frighten you because they are the largest eagle in the america, that can have a wingspan of 2 m in length, a weight of 4-6 Kg depending upon the male or female eagles, and a length of 1 m. The adult female can weigh about 8-9 Kg.
12.Bald Eagles have white feather heads
The reason behind it is called so is that the eagle head has white feathers that are special and unique to it among the many eagles so it is called bald eagle.
13.Adult Bald eagle has a white head while its baby doesn’t have white head
The baby or young Bald eagle don’t have white head like their parents, instead they have a black-brown head similar to their body color. However, they will start to develop the white head as they are turning into an adult bald eagle.
14.Harpy Eagle can attack and kill the monkeys for food
The Harpy Eagles are big monsters not only in size, but also in their talons size because they have 12 cm long talons on their back directed toes that are sharp and long enough to kill the big prey such as the monkeys and a medium sized deer as well.
15.Eagles can swim easily but they don’t always do it
Since eagles have hollow bones, they can float on water surfaces. When they catch a large fish, they can’t let it go out of their talons while also being unable to lift it into the air because the fish is too large, so they swim on water surfaces while heading for the shore to take the fish away from the water so that it can easily handle it.
16.Eagles have a super vision than the other birds of prey
Even though eagles weigh around 10lbs that is lesser than the average human weight, but eagles eyes are the same size as humans, with an eyesight estimated at 4 to 8 times efficient than that of the average human, Thus they can see something that is three miles away.
17.A female harpy Eagle can lift a monkey from the ground very easily
A female harpy eagle itself weighs about 9 Kg that is approximately double the weight of male harpy eagle. However, these female harpy eagles can prey and lift large animals such as monkeys and deer from ground to their nests.
18.The baby or chicks of Eagles are called eaglets
They chicks of eagles are called eaglets, so next time if we say ‘eaglet’ remember it’s the baby eagle. The eaglets can kill and eat other eaglets in a nest if its parents don’t feed them enough food.
19.There are many types of eagles present across the world
Some of the famous eagles are as follows.
Bald eagle, Golden eagle, White-bellied Sea-eagle, Sanford’s Sea-eagle, African Fish-eagle, Madagascar Fish-eagle, Pallas’s Fish-eagle, White-tailed Eagle, and Steller’s Sea-eagle
20.Eagles are found to build a super strong and big nests than any other birds
The Bald Eagle’s nest is much larger in size and weight, For example, The Bald Eagle’s nest is around 13 feet deep, 8.2 feet wide and it can weigh 1 tonne. However, they may use these nests again and again.
21.Eagles can go migration alone in bad weather
Eagles can go for distant regions in search of food, especially during scarcity of foods, good climate to avoid the current cold climates and so on. Which all depends on their age, experience and also whether they are undergoing breeding or not.
22.The lifespan of Eagles is expected to be more in a good artificial setup
When eagles are kept in captivity, their lifespan is supposed to be longer, which might surprise you! However, since they are well cared for in captivity or in zoos, and their general fitness is closely watched, they are believed to survive longer than they would in the wild. As a result, an eagle’s lifespan can be as long as 70 years, which is near to the lifespan of a healthy human being.
23.The eagle called ‘Philippine eagle’ is a national bird of the Philippine
The Philippines national bird is the eagle called ‘Philippine eagle’ or ‘Pithecophaga Jefferyi’ has been designated as the national bird of the Philippines.
24.Eagles are monogamous birds meaning they mate for life
Once they choose their partner they will live together till death, sharing foods, nests and taking care of the eaglets, and so on. However, either the male or female finds a new partner if their old partner undergoes death, accident or sometimes does not return to their nest.
25.Eagles drop their prey from higher altitudes in order to open and kill them
Eagles are smart because they learned to open shelled or large creatures by dropping them from higher altitudes on mountains or cliffs, allowing them to easily eat.
26.Eagle beaks can grow continuously
Like human fingernails, the beak of an eagle, continues to grow, resulting in a healthy and well-shaped beak. The beak continues to grow throughout its life, which is incredible when we consider that it will live up to 70 years.
27.Eagles can detect lights better than us
Birds can detect UV light in which eagles as well can detect UV light along and can also detect more colors thus they have better vision than us. Among many kinds of birds eagles have the best vision.
28.Eagle’s favorite food is fish
Among many foods such as snakes, squirrels, rabbits, pigeons etc. Eagle’s favorite food is the fish that it catches by themselves or forces the other birds to drop the fish that is caught by other birds, thus they play an opportunistic hunter role as well.
29.Eagle body temperature is more than human body temperature
They belong to the endothermic animals category, that is they are warm-blooded birds therefore their body temperature is constant and doesn’t change according to the surrounding environment, day or night. However, their body temperature is higher than other birds that is about 38-42°C.
30.South Nicobar serpent Eagle is the smallest eagle in the world
The South Nicobar serpent Eagle is the smallest eagle that is about 1 m in length, and is about 450-600 gm in weight. The South Nicobar serpent Eagle have many other names such as Great Nicobar Serpent-eagle, South Nicobar Serpent-eagle,Southern Nicobar Serpent-eagle, South Nicobar Serpent Eagle, and Small Serpent-eagle.
31.January 10 and March 18 are the days for Eagle celebration
Each and every year on January 10 is celebrated as the Save the Eagles Day. This day is dedicated for the mighty and majestic bird of prey that is Eagle. March 18 is also dedicated for eagles as a World Eagle Day and it is celebrated across the world.
32.Eagles can fly faster
Bald eagles can fly at a normal speed of 30 miles per hour (48 km per hour), a gliding speed of 45 miles per hour (72 km per hour) and a diving speed of 100 miles per hour(160 Km per hour)
33.Eagles are the bird of prey that is diurnal
Most of the birds of prey such as owls and others are nocturnal, that is, active during night and sleep in the day. However the Eagles are the bird of prey that is diurnal, that is active during day and rests at night.
34.Eagle takes care of their body, especially their feathers
Eagles often take care of their feathers, that is, if any feather of the wings is damaged or lost then they will remove the other side of the corresponding feather, so that they will grow simultaneously giving them a perfect balance while flying.
35.Female bald eagles are much heavier than males
For example the female bald eagles weigh about 14 pounds whereas the male bald eagle weighs about 12 pounds. Similarly in most of the species female eagles are larger than male eagles.
36.Eagles fly easily by using thermals
Eagles are better at handling the thermals, that is, warm and upward moving air columns, than other birds. Thus they spend less energy while flying through the thermals.
37.Golden eagles have feathers on their legs while the bald eagle doesn’t
The Golden Eagle are found to have feathers all over their legs that is upto their toes, whereas the Bald eagles don’t have feathers on their toes.
38.Bald Eagles found to play with plastic bottles and sticks
The Bald Eagle sometimes become playful especially in the air with their maneuver they have been known to play with sticks passing from one to other eagles. They also found playing with plastic bottles.
39.Steller’s Sea Eagle is the largest eagle in the world
Steller’s Sea Eagle is so big that are about 5-10 Kg in weight, about 1 m in length and are about 2-3 m in wingspan that are known to breed in Korea, Japan and Russia. The female Steller’s Sea Eagle are larger than the male Steller’s Sea Eagle.
40.The older the Eagle, the more the curve occurs in its beak
It is one of the signs to find the age of the eagles, that is, more the beak bends then usually older will be the eagles. However, after a certain curve occurs in a beak they feel hard to eat its food.
