DESCRIPTION

75-88 cms, wingspan of wings up to 230 cms; extremities of wings ruling out in the shape of finger. Brown plumage with feathers brown gilded on the neck. It has a hooked beak and big claws: greenhouses.

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HABITAT

In France, it nests in the Alps, Pyrenees, in the Causses in the South of the Massif Central but also the Jura and in Ardèche where it made its reappearance. Do not forget also Corsica, where it lodges along the central chain, in Cap Corse and Castagniccia. It nestles very high in the mountains, on the stones. This nest can reach 3.5 meters in height and 1.5 meters in width. It is observed up to more than 2500 m altitude. (In the winter, for eagles, it's very difficult to find food, so in the winter, most eagles in northern Canada migrate south to find warmth. The eagles have a need to leave, and the eagles seek refuge and use the position of the sun and stars to guide them.Scientists believe that the magnetic field can also influence the direction of travel. the birds as they migrate).

In summary : 

habitat : Europe, Asia, North America to Mexico and North Africa to the Sahara.
french habitat : Alps, Pyrenees, Corsica.

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WAY OF LIFE

Particularity: the female is larger than the male. Not very sociable, this bird often lives in couple. A female and a male can remain a whole life together. It slowly flies over the slopes of its territory, using hot currents of rising air, to find its prey and plunge on it at 150 km/h. It is rarely seen above non-mountainous areas.

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FOOD

It feeds mainly on mammals and birds. He hunts rabbits, marmots ... and occasionally foxes, young chamois and lambs. It spots its prey thanks to its exceptional view. Its hunting territory is very extensive. It brings its prey back to its claws, with four claws sharp and curved, to its nest. It can carry prey weighing up to 5 kg, so it consumes the heaviest prey on the spot. Its dive is around 300 km/h. In Russia, the Golden Eagle is set for wolf hunting.

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BREEDING

At 5 or 6 years old, these birds can begin to reproduce. When they are close to mating, they will look for a partner and keep him or her all their life, that's what scientists think. But if one of the spouses dies, the other will go get another partner. When they are sure they have chosen the right partner, they do a kind of dance called aerial ballet. They perform this aerial ballet until they are ready to build their nest. They have about 3 or 4 eggs per breeding. Their gestation is about a month or thirty days. For a month, the eggs are hatching. When one of the parents is tired of hatching, it calls its partner and it comes to replace him. It takes the eagle almost two days to get out of its shell. Often only the oldest of the eaglets is raised to adulthood because either the youngest dies of hunger or is killed by its brother.

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THREAT

Species considered rare in the U.E. The traditional threat causes of this eagle were : hunting, poisoning, trapping, nests in the nests and egg harvesting. Some of these threats currently persist. Long considered a nuisance, the Golden Eagle became protected only in the 1970s. It is protected in France according to Articles L.414-1 and L.414-2 of the Environment Code. It is in the SPEC 3, CPAM 3 category and is listed as rare in the Red Book of Threatened Species. The regional population is increasing with a breeding population of less than 50 pairs.

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