With its stark white head, dangerous talons, and a wingspan of more than 6.5 feet, the bald eagle cuts a silhouette few other birds in North America can compete with.
And yet, much of what we think we know about this raptor is, well, just plain wrong.
For instance, the bald eagle is not actually the national bird of the United States.
Even though the species, known scientifically as Haliaeetus leucocephalus, has appeared on the Great Seal of the United States since 1782, no president nor congress has ever officially declared the animal the national bird.
Conversely, the bison was designated the national mammal in 2016, and the oak named national tree in 2004.
Of course, none of this has stopped bald eagles from remaining prominent on American currency, military insignia, and every manner of patriotic merchandise.
The good news for bald eagle fans is that, as of last week, there is a bipartisan effort, led by the National Eagle Center and supported by the Midwest Alliance of Sovereign Tribes, to make the bald eagle’s status official.
This famous raptor’s official status isn’t the only fact many people get wrong about the bald eagle.
Screaming eagles
If you’ve ever seen a bald eagle on television or in the movies, there’s a good chance you’ve heard its telltale screech. Except, what you’re hearing is a lie.
“It’s usually a truck commercial or an iconic mountain scene where someone’s clinging to a rock face, and you hear what is supposed to be the sound of a bald eagle,” says Janet Ng, a wildlife biologist for the Canadian Wildlife Service.
“And it sounds really courageous,” she says. “Unfortunately, that’s the call of a red-tailed hawk.”
In reality, the bald eagle’s cry kind of sounds like a giggle, says Ng.
Thought bald eagles are portrayed as fearsome hunters, many prefer to scavenge. Some even steal the kills made by other predators.
Photograph By RICHARD SEELEY, National Geographic Image Collection
Are bald eagles really bald?
While it may look like bald eagles are lacking in head plumage, don’t worry—they’re actually well-insulated birds.
“They have feathers all the way from their beak to the ends of their legs,” says Ng. “The only bald spots on them are probably their beak and their toes.”
As bald eagles mature, the brown feathers that encircle their heads are replaced with a new batch of stark white feathers. Both male and female bald eagles sport white head feathers as adults.
In fact, the term “bald” here doesn’t actually refer to a lack of plumage, but instead is used in the fashion of the old English term for “white” colorations.
Similarly, you may have heard of horses having “piebald” coloration—which means they are black and white.
Predators unparalleled?
Standing at more than three feet in height and with talons capable of puncturing both skin and scales, there’s no doubt bald eagles are formidable predators.
“They catch a lot of fish,” says Ng, “and they actually catch a lot of ducks, too.”
But hunting its own meals is often a bald eagle’s backup plan.
“Their favorite way to get food is actually just to scavenge,” says Ng.
Sometimes they’re just looking for dead fish washed up on shore, and others make do with scraps from wolves, grizzlies, or hunters.
And if that doesn’t work, bald eagles aren’t above a bit of what scientists call kleptoparasitism—or stealing other predators’ kills. Osprey, which are themselves excellent fishers, often lose their catches to hungry bald eagles, says Ng.
Of course, none of this should stop you from celebrating bald eagles as the objectively glorious creatures they’ve evolved to be.
But the next time you see one of these birds soar through a scene at the movies, now you can be the one to lean over to a friend and say, “Well, actually…”
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