Bald eagle Facts for Kids

Haliaeetus leucocephalus · hal-ee-AY-eh-tus loo-koh-SEF-uh-lus

A big eagle with a white head that catches fish from rivers.

🏃 35 to 40 mph56 to 64 km/h1
⚖️ 7 to 14 lb3.2 to 6.4 kg2
📏 28 in to 3.2 ft71 to 97 cm3 long
🎂 20 years20 years3
🍽️ fish
Doing fine (Least Concern)

The bald eagle is a big bird with a white head. It catches fish with its feet. It is not really bald!

Bald eagles aren't bald: "bald" is an old word for white. They swoop down and grab fish from the water with their sharp talons. Young eagles are brown all over and get their white head and tail when they are a few years old.

The bald eagle is the national bird of the United States. Pairs build enormous nests of sticks at the tops of tall trees and add to them every year, so old nests become huge. Bald eagles almost disappeared from much of the country, partly because of a pesticide called DDT; after it was banned and the birds were protected, they came back.

How big is a bald eagle?

🧒 our measuring child, 4 ft1.2 m🦅 Bald eagle, 33 in84 cm long

Bald eagle in numbers

Length	28 in to 3.2 ft71 to 97 cm3head to tail
Height at the shoulder	no checked number yet
Weight	7 to 14 lb3.2 to 6.4 kg2
Top speed (flying)	35 to 40 mph56 to 64 km/h1level flight
How long it lives	20 years20 years3average
What it eats	mostly fish, plus ducks and dead animals
Where it lives	near lakes, rivers and coasts across North America
What kind	Birds
Is it in danger?	Doing fine (Least Concern)4

A number we couldn’t find on a page we trust says so, instead of guessing.

Wow!

"Bald" is an old word for white-headed.
A pair adds to the same nest year after year.
Young bald eagles are brown and get their white head later.

Compare the bald eagle

Friends and neighbours

Three questions

What does the bald eagle eat?

PlantsTiny sea lifeFish

The answer: Fish. It eats mostly fish, plus ducks and dead animals.

Where does the bald eagle live?

SavannaSnowPonds

The answer: Ponds. It lives in near lakes, rivers and coasts across North America.

Which is longer, the bald eagle or the cheetah?

The bald eagleThe cheetahThey're the same

The answer: The cheetah. Look at them side by side on the compare stage.

Books about the bald eagle, free at the library

Ask a grown-up to tap the button: it shows where to borrow a book about the bald eagle for free.

Where these numbers come from

National Park Service, Upper Delaware, checked 30 October 2026.
National Park Service, Kenai Fjords, checked 30 October 2026.
National Park Service (North American bald eagle), checked 30 October 2026.
Wikidata, from the IUCN Red List, checked 30 October 2026.
Wikidata, Bald eagle (Q127216), checked 30 October 2026.