White-tailed eagle

White-tailed eagles usually live most of the year near large bodies of open water, including coastal saltwater areas and inland freshwater lakes, wetlands, bogs and rivers. It requires old-growth trees or ample sea cliffs for nesting and an abundant food supply of fish and birds (largely water birds) amongst nearly any other available prey. Both a powerful apex predator and an opportunistic scavenger, it forms a species pair with the bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), which occupies a similar niche in North America.

Distribution and habitat

This eagle breeds in northern Europe and northern Asia. Their range extends to as far west as southern Greenland, northern and western Iceland, and the reintroduced populations in some areas of England, Ireland and Scotland, particularly conserved coastal spots. In mainland Europe the range is expanding, with Europe's largest population breeding in coastal Norway (broadly), northern and southwestern Finland, eastern Sweden, broadly in Denmark, islands of the Baltic Sea, western Austria, northeastern Germany, northern and eastern Poland, the Czech Republic, much of the east Baltic countries, the non-montane areas of Ukraine, eastern Slovenia, central and southern Hungary, sporadically in Greece, the Danube sections of Romania and Bulgaria to the Black Sea and western and eastern Moldova.

White-tailed eagles may be found in varied habitat but usually are closely associated with water and generally occurs in lowland areas. Although mainly a lowland species, the species is known to live at elevations of 1,500 to 2,300 m (4,900 to 7,500 ft) so long as there is water access in some parts of Central Asia and Siberia. In coastal areas, the species may range from high sea cliffs down to low-lying islands and archipelagos. Especially in winter, many white-tailed eagles often frequent low coastal spots, estuaries and coastal marshes.

Hunting

A large variety of animals have been recorded in their diet, and they are known to eat fish, birds, mammals, carrion, and offal. Fish constitute a majority of their diet in some areas. Avian prey includes grebes, ducks, coots, geese, swans, cormorants, partridges, pheasants, and nestlings, the last of which to such an extent that some bird populations have moved to avoid predation by White-Tailed Eagles. They eat mammals such as voles, sheep, deer calves, hares, arctic foxes, and muskrats; even roe deer have been recorded on occasion.

Heraldry

White-tailed eagle are prominent in ancient Saxon folklore and artwork with many landmarks named after the species. It is believed to be the White eagle shown in the German Coat of arms, Polish coat of arms and in the Serbian coat of arms. The sea eagle is often blazoned grasping a fish (usually a pike) in its talons, distinguishing it from an ordinary eagle.

Conservation status

Their maximum lifespan is 36 years in the wild and up to 50 in captivity.