* Threatened or Endangered
Bald Eagle *
: Haliaeetus leucocephalus
: Bird
: Rare, along shores and waterways from Alaska and Canada to Mexico
: Fish, fowl and small game
: Weight to 12 lbs., wingspread up to 7 feet
: Least Concern
Adult birds are readily identified by their white “bald” heads and tail feathers. Immature bald eagles have dark heads and necks and do not develop adult plumage until the age of three. Pesticides like DDT seeped into rivers and became concentrated in fish tissues. When the eagles ate these fish, it caused their eggshells to be too thin. The birds literally smashed their own eggs when they attempted to incubate them, resulting in plummeting numbers of the species.