Differences between Bald-Eagle and Stork

Bald-Eagle and Stork are two classes of birds that belong to the Accipitridae and Ciconiidae families respectively.

Bald Eagle is a type of Sea Eagle with two sub-species. It is a bird of prey with brown plumage and white tail. The bird is not actually bald, it has white colored feather on its head. It is characterized by yellow eyes, beak, and feet. The beak is hooked and is used for capturing the prey and preening. The bird has four toes and talons on each foot. One of the toes faces backwards and helps in holding the prey with extreme grip. According to scientists, the grip of a Bald Eagle is 10 times stronger than that of an average human’s hand. The bird also has exceptional hearing and vision. Bald Eagle is famous as the national bird of the USA.

Stork is a large wading bird with long legs and long beak. Its beak and legs are usually red in color, while its eyes are grey. The color of its body could be streaks of white, black, and red depending on the geography. The bird’s head and upper neck are usually not covered with feathers. The Stork is almost mute as it has an undeveloped syrinx. The Stork family consists of about 20 species of birds such as Marabou Stork and Adjutant Stork. The family is related to Herons, Ibises, and Flamingos.

Where are Bald-Eagle and Stork found?

Bald Eagles live around water sources surrounded by forests. They can be found near rivers, reservoirs, lakes, and coasts. They are native to North America. They exist in Mexico, the USA, Alaska, and Canada.

Storks choose to live near marshes, grasslands, meadows, rivers, ponds, and lakes. They are not prevalent across the world. They exist chiefly in Asia, Africa, and Europe. One bird from their species can be found in Australia, while three others occur around Argentina and Florida.

What do Bald-Eagle and Stork eat?

Bald Eagles chiefly eat fish. They also hunt snakes, turtles, small ducks, gulls, geese, lambs, foxes, dogs, rodents, rabbits, and crabs. These birds are also known to eat dead animals and abduct the prey from other animals.

Storks are carnivores that mainly eat fish. They also feed on reptiles, insects, amphibians, mice, worms, mollusks, crustaceans, and even small alligators. They generally capture their prey in fields and shallow waters.

Here are a few pointers about the eating patterns between Bald-Eagle and Stork

• Both Bald-Eagle and Stork eat Fish.
• Both Bald-Eagle and Stork eat Frogs.
• Both Bald-Eagle and Stork eat Lizards.
• Both Bald-Eagle and Stork eat Snakes.
• Both Bald-Eagle and Stork eat Turtles.
• Both Bald-Eagle and Stork eat Squirrels.
• Gophers are commonly eaten by Bald-Eagle, but not by all Stork.
• Baby Ducks are consumed by both Bald-Eagleand Stork.
• Mice are eaten by both Bald-Eagle and Stork.

Size of Bald-Eagle and Stork?

When it comes to size, The overall size of a Bald Eagle is 2.8-3.5 feet. It has a wingspan of six to eight feet.. Storks are huge birds. They are about two to five feet tall with wide wings that measure over 10 feet. The biggest storks in the world are the Shoebill and Marabou that stand five feet tall.

Bald Eagles are enormous birds. They weigh 7-15 pounds. while Average weight of Storks is 3-17 pounds depending on the species. Marabou is the largest species and weighs around 17 pounds.

Where do Bald-Eagle and Stork nest?

Bald Eagles build the largest nests among all birds in the world. Known as eyries, these nests are four to five feet wide and about two feet deep. They weight up to one ton. Some nests can be double this size. They are made by interweaving sticks and branches, while soft material like grass, feathers, and moss are used inside. Nests are generally positioned on top of large trees in the vicinity of water sources. The eggs are a pale white and shaped oval. Both partners share the task of incubating the eggs for about 35 days. The young ones fledge when they are eight to 14 weeks old.

Storks build their nests on trees and shrubs that stand in flooded water. They do so to keep predators away from eating the eggs. Both male and female birds participate in the construction of the nest, besides sharing the responsibility to incubate them for about five weeks, after which the eggs hatch. Baby Storks usually fledge 50-65 days after hatching. An interesting fact about parenting in Storks is that the parents sometimes throw some chicks out of the nests so that they can feed the healthy chicks well and support their survival.

How long do Bald-Eagle and Stork live?

The average lifespan of Bald Eagles is 20-30 years in the wild. Their life is threatened by illegal hunting, lead poisoning, electrocution, and loss of habitat. The oldest lived Bald Eagle was 38 years old. It died in 2015 due to collision with a car.

Storks can live for over 30 years in the wild. They have been known to live up to 35 years in captivity. The longest living species was a White Stork that lived for 39 years in Switzerland.

Are Bald-Eagle or Stork migratory birds?

Bald Eagles usually reside in their territories throughout the year. The ones living in Canada and Alaska travel south to spend the winters in central and southern parts of USA.

Storks migrate during winters to warmer regions as they cannot find food in colder weather. They are known to migrate long distances, for instance from Europe to Africa, sub-Saharan region to South Africa or India. They mostly migrate in huge groups.

Do Bald-Eagle and Stork fly in flocks?

A flock of Bald Eagles is called a congregation or convocation. The birds are solitary. In winters, they may roost in groups to keep themselves warm. They fly alone even during migration.

A group of Storks is known as a muster of Storks or a phalanx of Storks. These birds are highly sociable. They stay together and migrate in massive flocks that can even encompass a thousand birds. However, during the breeding season they prefer smaller groups or solitude.

Are Bald-Eagle or Stork protected?

Bald Eagles are protected in the USA under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. The laws prohibit harming and killing the birds or owning their body parts. The birds are also protected in Canada.

Storks are a protected species in Asia, Africa, and Europe. Conservation laws like the African Conservation Action Plan and the African-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement have come up in response to concerns of the International Union for Conservation of Nature that the Black Storks are not protected satisfactorily.

Are Bald-Eagle or Stork endangered?

The population of Bald Eagles had declining to about 450 nesting pairs in 1960s in the USA. The bird was listed as endangered in 1978. However, the banning of DDT and other conservation efforts have yielded good results. With an increase in the numbers of Bald Eagles to about 4,500 nesting pairs in 1995, the species was re-classified as threatened. With further increase in their population to over 6,300 nesting pairs in 2000, the species has been removed from the endangered and threatened species list.

Storks are extant birds. They had become extinct in the UK about 500 years back but emerged back in the 1970s. They have however become extinct in Japan, Korea, Myanmar, and Bangladesh. The Adjutant Stork is endangered in India and Cambodia, and the Painted Stork is critically endangered in parts of Asia. Very few Storks are also left in Italy due to widespread poaching.

Can Bald-Eagle and Stork fly?

Bald Eagles fly by soaring high with the use of thermals and wind currents. They manage their speed by altering the position of their wings. During long migration, the birds rarely flap their wings in order to conserve energy. The average flying speed of Bald Eagles is 75-100 miles an hour.

Storks fly with their neck and legs stretched out. They flap and soar with their broad wings, using thermal air currents. They can reach altitudes of 1,500 metres above sea level and touch speeds of over 110 miles per hour. During migration, they fly nearly 4,400 miles.

Can Bald-Eagle and Stork swim?

Bald Eagles can swim but seldom do. They are mostly airborne birds. They also dive into water to catch their prey.

Storks are not swimmers. They do not prefer deep waters and usually choose shallow waters for their habitat.

Mating patterns among Bald-Eagle and Stork

Bald Eagles reach sexual maturity when they are four or five years old. During the breeding season, the birds become aggressive to defend their territory. Of their mating rituals, the prominent is the cartwheel courtship flight where the male and female soar high, lock their talons, and fall to the ground in a cartwheel spin. They also chase each other and perform aerial dances. The partners may copulate more than once a day. When the eggs are laid, both male and female take turns to incubate them for 34-36 days. The partners also share the responsibility of feeding and protecting the young ones. The eaglets are ready to fledge when they are about 12 weeks old.

Storks start breeding when they are about four years old. The male bird is the first one to arrive at the nesting site. He initiates by building a nest or revamping an existing one and ducking on it. The male and female engage in elaborate mating dances. They raise a single brood each year, which consists of two to five eggs.

When is the mating season for Bald-Eagle and Stork ?

Bald Eagles in the south-eastern regions of USA start mating in October and pursue till February-March. For the birds in western states, mating season commences in January.

The breeding season for Storks is generally the spring. This is usually from the start of February till the end of April.

Do Bald-Eagle and Stork mate for life?

Bald Eagles are monogamous. Not only do they mate for life, they also make caring partners and parents.

Storks are known to be monogamous and faithful to their partners during every breeding season and even for a few years. They may find new partners during migrations or in consecutive breeding seasons. In case of monogamous partners, they generally revisit their nesting site and use the same nests with little restoration.

How do Bald-Eagle and Stork sleep?

Bald Eagles roost communally during winters. They sleep on large trees to stay sheltered from severe wind and cold. During the breeding season, they sleep closer to the nests. The birds have a locking mechanism in their legs that allows them to maintain their standing posture while asleep.

Storks roost in colonies. They sleep on trees and shrubs surrounded by water. Some storks even sleep standing on one leg in water.

Can Bald-Eagle and Stork be eaten?

Bald Eagles were eaten in ancient times by Hare, Tlingit, and few other communities. However, modern laws do not permit killing and consumption of the birds.

Storks are edible and some people do eat them. However, the bird is protected, and it is illegal to kill them for food.

Can you hunt Bald-Eagle or Stork?

Archaic cultures hunted Bald Eagles for food by using bows and arrows, hooks, and traps. Subsequently, they were hunted for sport and their feathers. Owing to a reduction in their population, laws have been passed prohibiting any form of killing and hunting of the birds.

Thousands of White Storks lose their lives every year due to illegal hunting for sport, especially in Lebanon and Italy. The birds are also shot for their meat. All this is despite existence of laws to protect the bird.

Can you feed Bald-Eagle or Stork?

Feeding Bald Eagles in public is forbidden in the USA and Canada. In captivity, the birds are given whole fish, rats, guinea pigs, and chicken.

Feeding wild animals and birds in public places is not permitted in places like USA, Singapore, and Dubai. Storks are huge birds and need to be fed a lot of food. In captivity, these birds are fed with fish, frogs, small birds, earthworms, lizards, and meat.