The Steller's sea eagle is named after Georg Steller. He was a German biologist. He explored Kamchatka and Alaska in the 1700s. The eagle has a dark body with white on its shoulders, thighs and tail. It has a very large yellow bill.

Female Steller's sea eagles are larger than the males. A female can weigh up to about 20 pounds (9 kilograms). A male weighs less. The wings of this eagle can stretch up to 8 feet from tip to tip. It has a deep, barking cry.

These eagles live near sea coasts and big rivers. They nest in eastern Russia, around the Sea of Okhotsk and on the Kamchatka Peninsula. A pair often returns to the same nest each year. It adds more branches to it. The nests are huge, in big trees or on rocky cliffs. In winter, many fly south to Japan.

A Steller's sea eagle hunts from a perch or while flying. It catches prey in its talons. Sometimes it stands in shallow water or on ice. It grabs fish that swim by. It eats mostly salmon, a kind of fish. Besides fish, it eats crabs, shellfish, small animals, gulls and carrion. Carrion is an animal that is already dead. It will sometimes steal food from other birds.

A female lays one to three eggs in spring. A pair usually raises just one chick, even when more than one egg is laid. A chick is covered in soft gray-white down. The down slowly changes to brown feathers. A young eagle learns to fly at about 10 weeks old.

Words to know

• biologist: life scientist
• perch: high seat
• talons: sharp claws
• carrion: dead animal
• prey: hunted food