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- The Golden Eagle: A Beautiful Bird Of Prey -

The Golden Eagle I feel is the most beautiful and graceful of birds, a bird of prey that looks sophisticated and stylish in its flight and never remotely close to ungraceful. To see the Golden Eagle in its flight is the most wonderful experience; to see it on screen is one thing, but right there in front of you is something else entirely.

There are many different types of eagle in the world today, all of which belong to the Accipitridae family. The Golden Eagle is one of the twelve species of large eagles in the genus Aquila. I find the Golden Eagle to be the most fascinating of birds, a bird I have had a great love for since seeing one at a young age not far from I at the peak of a mountain in France. It is an experience that has never quite left me, one that I shall no doubt remember until the day that I die. The Golden Eagle possesses the most marvelous of beauty and the largest races are the largest of the genus Aquila.

Eagles are not a natural group of birds, but instead the word essentially denotes any bird of prey that is large enough to hunt vertebrate prey of 50 centimeters in length and larger. There are six different subspecies of the Golden Eagle, each of which is of a characteristically different size and stature. Length of the Golden Eagle can vary between 66 and 100cm whilst wingspan ranges between 150 and 240cm, and weight between 2.5 and 7kg.

With its huge wingspan, the Golden Eagle in its flight is an absolute joy to behold. They can reach speeds of around 80mph in their flight, however tend to average around 28-32mph. Another interesting fact about their flight is that once in a dive, speeds as great as 200mph can be achieved; now that's one quick bird of prey.

Once paired up, Golden Eagles will remain together for life and will generally build several eyries within an area. Each year the nest is enlarged, bolstered with further tree branches and carefully upholstered with grass. These eyries make perfect shelters for the children of the future, the eagles to which the pair will give birth to.

Depending on the area; the female of the species will lay her eggs between January and May. Two eggs are laid, hatching after 45 days into birds all white in color. The birds are fed for fifty days and then must make their first attempts at flight. It is generally the case that one survives whilst the other dies without ever having left the eyrie. Of course, this is not always the case but the first born is usually fed the vast majority of the food and is therefore the far likelier of the two to survive.

Golden Eagle feathers are often worn on the headdresses of Native American people. Both Bald and Golden Eagles are often seen as extremely sacred and highly spiritual creatures, and therefore the wearing of the feather of a Golden Eagle on a headdress is a signal of the respect and love that that these people hold for Golden Eagles. The feathers are used to honor achievements such as the showing of exceptional leadership and bravery. Given the grace with which the Golden Eagle flies, and the elegance the bird possesses; it is no surprise that these people see the bird of prey as such a sacred being.

The Golden Eagle is by far my favorite of all the birds of prey. There is just something greatly captivating about this particular bird, something which makes it stand out through its great beauty and utter elegance. With its 7 foot wingspan and 3 foot body length, the Golden Eagle truly is a sensational bird and is one that I will never forget witnessing first hand.

Learn more about this author, Richard Leigh.
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