A Pure Symbol Of Freedom: The American Bald Eagle

The bald eagle, (haliaeetus leucocephalus) gets its name from the adult, meaning white or "bald" head. You may also be familiar with some of its other names: American Eagle, Washington Eagle, or white-headed eagle. An eagle does not become 'bald' until it becomes a mature bird at the age of 4-5 years.

You can distinguish an immature eagle by the color of it. Immature bald eagles are big birds as well, yet they are dark brown with blotches of white under their wings.

We spotted an immature eagle after we got off the Winfield Ferry. It was perched high above us in a cottonwood tree with its back turned to us. Every now and then, he would turn his head to take a peek at us, but for the most part, he ignored the scouting group. Eagles are known to be opportunistic creatures, but on the flip side of that, they are also timid animals.

Another distinction between the adult bald eagle and the immature eagle, is that the bald eagle does not breed until he is mature.

The iris of the eye is another distinction between an immature eagle and an adult bald eagle. The colors change from dark brown to yellow in an adult bald eagle. The beak changes from black to yellow as well.

Bald eagles, like many birds, won't let you get too close to them. A couple of times when I was positioning myself to take that great shot, I crossed the line of proximity, and the eagles flew away. They don't mind being stared at, just don't get too close.

In the winter, bald eagles migrate south to find food when the lakes and rivers freeze in the North. Illinois happens to be an important wintering area for bald eagles, and St. Louis is right next door to this hotbed of bald eagle activity.

An estimated 3000-4000 bald eagles winter in this area. Typically, the bald eagle shows up around December 15th and they are all but gone by March 15th.

Our tour guide explained that the bald eagle knows when its time to leave the area Judging by the amount of time the sun stays out, the bald eagle knows that spring is coming, so they leave the area to go breed.

The bald eagle spends less than 5% of its time soaring, foraging and feeding. Most of the time the eagle will perch in large open trees close to the water. Close to the water and in trees is where we saw 90% of the 70 eagles we saw on our eagle scouting tour at Pere Marquette State Park in Grafton, Illinois.

I asked our scout, do bald eagles have a special location in which to sleep?

Yes. The bald eagle will sometimes fly 10-12 miles from water seeking a sheltered roost. The bald eagle, at night needs protection from the cold and wind, so they seek ravines for shelter.

Here are a few quick facts about the American bald eagle:

• Most eagles die before they become adults

• The record age for a banded eagle is 22 years. Several captive eagles have lived to well past 40 years.

• Eagles perch in trees for long periods of time to conserve energy.

• The bald eagle's vision is 4-6X greater than human's.

• The wingspan of a bald eagle is 7-8 feet.

• Bald eagles will eat anything that has food value. Fish is preferred, but they'll eat other birds, mammals, carrion, garbage, feces, etc.

• Female eagles are larger than male eagles. Although you can't tell the sex of an eagle just by looking at it, a chromosome test has to be done to determine the sex of an eagle.

• A female eagle usually weighs 10-14lbs. while a male weighs 8-10lbs.