Once and Eagle....always an Eagle

Just a little tid-bit for you...I am into nature, and I love this stuff....So this past winter when I would take the train home to Fredericksburg VA we would go through Quantico, and I noticed that on the ride home right before Quantico and immediately after I would see these huge nests and I noticed OMG they are Bald Eagles. I have never seen Bald Eagles in the wild before and I would love to watch them flying. So today when I was out with my kids, I decided to stop by the commissary at Quantico but while I was at the USAA Financial ATM Center, I heard this bird call, and I was like that sounds like an Eagle, so I looked around and looked and up high and it was a EAGLE, I would thought it was a momma eagle but I don't know which it was..But it was SURELY amazing to be really close to this eagle and hear it making it's call...

PS my high school were the Eagles, once and eagle ALWAYS an eagle

Here are some eagle fact sheets,

General Facts About Bald Eagles
  • June 28, 2007 - The Department of Interior took the American bald eagle off the endangered species list. The removal of the bald eagle from the Federal List of Endangered and Threatened Wildlife and Plants will become effective 30 days after publication in the Federal Register.
  • The bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) is a member of the sea and fish eagle group.

  • Color - Both male and female adult bald eagles have a blackish-brown back and breast; a white head, neck, and tail; and yellow feet and bill.

  • Juvenile bald eagles are a mixture of brown and white. They reach full maturity in four to five years.

  • Size - The female bald eagle is 35 to 37 inches, slightly larger than the male.

  • Wingspan ranges from 72 to 90 inches.

  • Bald eagles can fly to an altitude of 10,000 feet. During level flight, they can achieve speeds of about 30 to 35 mph.

  • Bald eagles weigh from ten to fourteen pounds.

  • Eagle bones are light, because they are hollow.

  • The beak, talons, and feathers are made of keratin.

  • Bald eagles have 7,000 feathers.

  • Longevity - Wild bald eagles may live as long as thirty years.

  • Bald eagles sit at the top of the food chain

  • Lifting power is about 4 pounds.

  • Diet - Mainly fish, but they will take advantage of carrion (dead and decaying flesh).

  • The bald eagle is a strong swimmer, but if the water is very cold, it may be overcome by hypothermia.

  • Hunting area varies from 1,700 to 10,000 acres. Home ranges are smaller where food is present in great quantity.

  • All eagles are renowned for their excellent eyesight.

  • Nests are built in large trees near rivers or coasts.

  • An eagle reaches sexual maturity at around four or five years of age.

  • Fidelity - Once paired, bald eagles remain together until one dies.

  • Bald eagles lay from one to three eggs.

  • The 35 days of incubation duties are shared by both male and female.

  • Nesting cycle - about 20 weeks

  • Today, there are an estimated 9,789 breeding pairs of bald eagles.

  • Eagles molt in patches, taking almost half a year to replace feathers, starting with the head and working downward.

  • The bald eagle became the National emblem in 1782 when the great seal of the United States was adopted.

  • Causes of death - Fatal gun shot wounds, electrocution, poisoning, collisions with vehicles, and starvation.

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