Golden+Eagle

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Basic Statistics
**SCIENTIFIC NAME:** //Aquila chrysaetos//
 * Genus || //Aquila// ||
 * Family || //Accipitridae// ||
 * Order || //Falconformes// ||
 * Class || //Aves// ||
 * Phylum || //Chordata// ||
 * Kingdom || //Animali// ||

Ecology
Golden eagles prey upon animals as: mice, rabbits, hares, lambs, carrion (dead animal carcass), squirrels, gophers, prairie dogs, fawns of the deer and antelope family, wild turkeys, reptiles and other smaller birds. 20 to 70 % of its food are birds and, 20 to 80 % are mammals. In winter the eagles scaveng on carrion, but if not enough is available they will hund owls, hawks, falcons, and wolveines. Occasionally young domestic livestock and carrion are eaten, and rarely will they eat insects and dead fish. This Bird of prey is at the top of its food chain in any place it domains. Some eagles hunt in pairs to have a more successful hunt. One eagle will chase its prey towards the hidden eagle, and at the right moment the hidden eagle will come out and kill the prey. .media type="youtube" key="xAsXtDKdU0Q" height="221" width="275" media type="youtube" key="opscZDhWGqM" height="229" width="288" Golden Eagle prefers large forest complexes with mountain meadows and pastures. It nests in hardly accessible terrains in areas with low human disturbance. Oftn the nests are located in the altitude from 800 to 1200 m in areas hardly accessible for man. Eagles seldom build the nests on spruces, pines, larches and beeches. Their nests are build usually on old trees with the age over 100 years. Golden Eagle and its young, in a eyrie/nest.

Physiology
A full fledged eagle wing span of between 180 - 220 cm. and can weigh up to 5 kilograms. Female golden eagles are much larger than the males and can weigh 1/4 to 1/3 more than the male.The estimated lifespan of the Golden Eagle is 30 years. Their feather colors range from black-brown to dark brown, with a striking golden-buff crown and nape. Young eagles before they are adults look just like the adults except their colors look more dull and mottled appearance. The golden eagle is sometimes seeing floating effortlessly in circles in the sky for hours, this is an adaptation needed to find prey. Being able to fly, or floating effortlessly for hours in the summer thermal( a rising air current caused by heating from the underlying surface), gives the eagles the ability to find food fast and swiftly catch it. Eagles have very good eyesight and can spot prey from a long distance. Their talons are used for killing and carrying the prey, the beak is used only for eating. The Golden Eagle mates for life and stay within a large territory with multiple nests or eyries. These nests consist of heavy tree branches, upholstered with grass when in use. Old eyries may be 2 meters (6.6 feet) in diameter and 1 meter (3.3 feet) in height, as the eagles repair their nests whenever necessary and enlarge them during each use. The female usually lays two eggs in winter or early spring. The eggs hatch after 45 to 50 days, most of the time only one of the eggs survives to adulthood, but if there's been good hunting both survive.

Endangerment/Conservation
Golden Eagle in Slovakia is protected by number of legislative norms, the eagle is on the endangered species list. The loss of habitat for those that nest on high tree tops, a decrease in hunting ground, and effects of pollution from chemicals such as DDT. People steal eggs, poach, give poison bait and telephone lines electrocute young eagles.

Eagle died of DDT effects.

DDT or dichlorodiphenyl trichloroethane, was synthesized in 1874. More than four billion pounds of DDT have been used throughout the world since 1940. Production in the United States peaked in 1961 when 160 million pounds were manufactured. Large economic benefits have resulted from the control of many serious agricultural and forestry pests, including Colorado potato beetle, cotton boll weevil, and pests of fruit, vegetables, corn, and tobacco. It was a very good pest control, saving lives by killing mosquetoes, flees, and lice. Effects of DDT are: the thinning of the eggshells of predatory birds, resulting in embryonic death and decreasing populations

Important Links
//Clive A. Edwards// "World Wildlife Federation DDT Report." Available from [|http://www.worldwildlife.org/toxics].

Davis, James R. (2008) "Golden Eagle in Alabama"4/19/10 http://www.yale.edu/bass/writing/sources/kinds/citeinternet/organization.html

__[|Website on the Golden Eagle maintained by Raptor Protection of Slovakia]__ http://www.orolskalny.sk/en/certificate.php

"Golden Eagle" //animal corner// copy write 2003 web 4/30/10 http://www.animalcorner.co.uk/britishwildlife/goldeagle.html
Wiki Eittiquette @Ecology Class of 2010