As a land of geo-diversity, America is home to many varieties of native and migrant birds. You can see many species of birds at the, wetlands, forests, bay area, and also at the mountains. For birdwatchers and nature enthusiasts, there are many preserved sanctuaries also to visit in America. There are many books too available on the topic of birds of Americas for the public to gain awareness in terms of preservation of natural habitats of birds.
When it comes to big birds, many of these species from all across the globe are found in the Americas too. Here are a few common varieties of such big birds seen in America.
- Golden Eagle
Golden Eagle is a popular bird, which is found almost everywhere around North America, though most commonly at west and north. This bird is also found largely at different regions of North Africa and Asia. It is noted to be a common bird of the interiors, mostly choosing mountains as its home. They construct their nesting with big sticks and straws on top of tall trees or rocky ledges.
The major food items of Golden Eagles are prairie dogs, rabbits, ground squirrels, and various small mammals. You may be finding them flying calmly at a height, then swiftly swooping down to grab its prey. They used to hunt in pairs. They lay white eggs marked with brown blotches, which are incubated for about a month and the young eaglets coming out will be covered white down. The immature golden eagle differs from the young bald eagle and have their legs feathered down to the toes and thus can always be identified. The major threat to this species is that eagles have ever been irresistible targets for the rifleman.
- California Condor
It is the largest flying birds of Americas, found in abundance at North America, mostly at the coastal area of California, Oregon, and Mexico. These birds are typically known for their specific nature of having only a single mate for life and when one in the pair dies due to any cause, the lone bird will no more survive. The entire species of California Condors neared extinction a few years back when ranchers left poisoned meat to kill coyotes. Now there are only a few left in this category.
The nesting place of California Condors are usually inaccessible to human as on the bare floor of cave-like recesses, high up among rocks, or at the stumps which are quite tall. Young Condors are covered with white down and also features yellow bills. On growing feathers, they get covered with sooty gray and the bill and neck become black. You can find several of these birds at different zoological parks in USA.
- Turkey Vultures
Turkey Vultures are another major category when you consider the biggest birds of Americas. These are considered to be one among the most graceful birds, and you can see them floating at a height with effortless flying. The major features of Turkey Vultures are widespread wings and long rounded tail. On getting a glimpse of food below, they will drop instantly one after another until all the vultures in the gang enjoy the feast. These scavengers also help us in keeping the land clear off any animal refuse.
There are several more birds of Americas too fearing extinction . So, one needs to be careful in future while planning constructions and urbanization, not to shrink the natural habitats of these birds.
