Eagles are one of the biggest raptors in the world, and there are a lot more than you think. Raptors are predators with hooked beaks, excellent eyesight and curved talons. There are around 60 species of eagles in the world, with only 11 of those found in North and South America. The most famous eagle is the Bald eagle because it is THE American freedom symbol. Another well know eagle in North America is the Golden eagle, the eagle on the Mexico flag. The flag shows an eagle eating a snake on a cactus.
One of the coolest eagles is the Harpy eagle, the most powerful in the world. It is from Central and South America. They are extraordinary, and catch very large prey including monkeys, sloths and snakes. They also have an almost crown-like arrangement of feathers on their head. The Harpy eagle has talons as long as a Grizzly bear’s claws.
There are 4 classes of eagles:
- Serpent eagles
- Booted eagles
- Sea eagles
- Giant Forest eagles
These classification are based on what the eagle is or does. For instance, an eagle that hunts on the sea is a sea eagle. An eagle that eats snakes is a serpent eagle. What is a booted eagle you might ask? Well, it is an eagle that has feathers around its feet like a boot.
Eagles play a large part in some cultures including Mexican and Egyptian cultures. The goddess Nekhbet from ancient Egypt was even based on an eagle.
One of the ancient relatives of eagles is the Argentavis. It was one of the largest birds ever with a wingspan of 7 meters ( 22 feet), which is approximately the size of a Cessna 152 plane.
The Argentavis is also closely related to vultures and has made appearances in media every once in a while, including in the video game Ark Survival Evolved. There are also other ancient eagles that may have eaten ancient humans. For example, the Haast’s eagle was large enough to have preyed on young humans. But you don’t need to worry about anything like that now!
Eagles inhabit every corner of the earth except for Antarctica, with most being found in Eurasia and Africa.
The largest and heaviest eagle is the Steller’s sea eagle which lives in East Asia (Russia, Japan, and Korea) but can sometimes be found in North America. They weigh around 20 pounds, with a 8 foot wingspan. For comparison, Bald eagles weigh around 14 lbs and are about 2.5 feet tall.
The tallest eagle is the Giant Philippine, standing up to 3.8 feet tall. The eagle with the largest wingspan is the Wedge Tailed eagle of Australia with a whopping 9 foot wingspan, compared to a Bald eagle’s 6 foot wingspan.
The smallest is the Great Nicobar serpent eagle weighing only 1 pound with a wingspan of just 40 inches.
