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Golden Eagle

Aquila chrysaetos


Where is it found?

Picture
Mountains

Diet and foraging method

Eats meat
Eagles primarily hunt from the air by diving and ambushing prey, but if that fails, they will pursue their prey and chase after them. They also scavenge for carrion like deer carcasses.
Small mammals
Eats birds
Eats carrion

Key adaptations

Large, sharp talons for holding and dismembering prey.
Sharp, pointed beak for using as a weapon to kill prey quickly and also useful for tearing meat off carcasses.


Social organisation and mating system

Picture
Solitary
Picture
Picture
Form socially monogamous breeding pairs. The pair bond often lasts for life and pairs usually return to the same nest every year.

Did you know that...?

Golden Eagles can reach speeds of almost 200 miles an hour when diving for prey and partaking in aerial dances during courtship.

Golden Eagles are North America's largest bird of prey.

Golden Eagles only known predators are Grizzly Bears and Wolverines.

Taxonomy

Picture

Sources:

http://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Golden_Eagle/lifehistory
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golden_eagle
http://www.arkive.org/golden-eagle/aquila-chrysaetos/
http://animaldiversity.org/site/accounts/information/Aquila_chrysaetos.html



Maps from: http://species.mol.org/species/
 "Golden Eagle 3" by Juan Lacruz - Own work. Licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Golden_Eagle_3.jpg#/media/File:Golden_Eagle_3.jpg
"Golden-eagle-4" by William H. Majoros - Own work. Licenced under CC BY-SA 3.0 via Wikimedia Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Golden-eagle-4.jpg#/media/File:Golden-eagle-4.jpg
"Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos)" by Chuck Abbe - originally posted to Flickr as Golden Eagle (Aquila chrysaetos). Licensed under CC BY 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Golden_Eagle_(Aquila_chrysaetos).jpg#/media/File:Golden_Eagle_(Aquila_chrysaetos).jpg
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