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  Profile

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  In flight

Birds of Prey

Golden Eagle

Aquila chrysaetos

• common
• 48 km/h
• Starter
• Least Concern

Powerful enough to take down a young deer. The Mongolian eagle hunters' bird of choice for over 6,000 years.

Population

Not precisely censused globally; described as widespread but uncommon to fairly common across its Holarctic range, with regional declines noted in parts of Europe and the eastern US

Habitat

Open and semi-open terrain — mountains, tundra, shrublands, grasslands, and boreal forest edges (sea level to ~3,600 m elevation) — generally avoiding dense forest and heavily developed land

Fun fact

A golden eagle banded in Sweden was recovered 32 years later, matching the oldest confirmed wild-lifespan record for the species, while the heaviest wild individual on record — a Wyoming female caught in 2006 — weighed 7.7 kg (17 lb).

Range

Holarctic: across North America (mainly western half, Alaska to central Mexico), Eurasia, and North Africa

Diet

Carnivorous — primarily small-to-medium mammals (rabbits, hares, ground squirrels, marmots, prairie dogs), also birds, reptiles, fish, and carrion; occasionally larger prey such as young ungulates, taken cooperatively

Size

0.84 m

Wingspan

2.03 m

Lifespan

32 years