North AmericaLeast concern
Bald eagle
Haliaeetus leucocephalus
The national bird of the USA, with a white head and a hooked yellow beak. It lives near lakes, rivers and coasts.
- Weight
- Up to 6.3 kg
- Size
- Up to 2.3 m wingspan
- Lifespan
- 20–30 years
- Top speed
- About 120 km/h diving
- Diet
- Mostly fish
How heavy is that?
About 16% of a 40 kg kid
Where it lives
Three things to know
- Its nest is the biggest of any tree-nesting bird, up to 2.5 m wide.
- Young eagles are brown; the white head appears at about 5 years old.
- It nearly disappeared in the 1960s and is common again today.
Compare with…
- Weight
- Bald eagle6.3 kgA 10-year-old kid40 kgThe kid weighs about 6× as much as the bald eagle
- Size
- Bald eagle2.3 mA 10-year-old kid1.4 mThe bald eagle is about 1.6× as big as the kid
- Top speed
- Bald eagle120 km/hA 10-year-old kid20 km/hThe bald eagle is about 6× as fast as the kid
- Lifespan
- Bald eagle30 yrsA 10-year-old kid80 yrsThe kid can live about 2.7× as long as the bald eagle
