Adaptations

Birds of prey usually have large and bright eyes. They have three eyelids to protect their eyes. The third eyelid, called the nictitating (Nick-tit-ate-ing) membrane, closes from side to side. It moistens and cleans the eye. To find their food, birds of prey must have very sharp eyesight. When it comes to seeing objects at a distance, their eyes are 8 to 10 times better than the human eye.

All birds have hollow bones to help make their bodies lighter. But, as light as it is, the skeleton of a bird of prey is very strong.

The wing is designed for a powerful flight with little effort. The curved tapering feathers at the end of the wing are called primaries, or flight feathers. They help the eagle glide efficiently. The slipstream of air from each primary feather gives lift to it behind and keeps the bird aloft.

The immature Bald Eagle has burnished feathers on its neck that help distinguish it from an adult Bald Eagle. It has no white feathers until the third year. The head and tail may not be completely white until their sixth year.

The adult Bald Eagle has lower legs that are unfeathered. Vestiges of white show at the base of the flight feathers. Only its head, part of the neck, and the tail are white. There are about 7,000 feathers on an eagle.

The Bald Eagle has very sharp talons. Talons are strong hook-shaped, sharp claws. Eagles use their talons to catch their food which is usually slippery. The Bald Eagle has four talons on each foot. The talons of the Bald Eagle are black.

The Bald Eagle's beak is hooked and it is very sharp. The strong beak allows it to tear apart tough meat.
The talons and beak are just two of the many adaptations that make the Bald Eagle a very special bird. The Bald Eagle is a bird that uses all of its adaptations to survive in the wild.

QTVR - Eagle Skull - 188Kb

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