# What Do Bald Eagles Eat?

> What bald eagles eat: Carnivore (mainly fish), foraging style, and seasonal shifts in Forests near lakes, rivers, and coasts.

- **Species:** Bald Eagle (*Haliaeetus leucocephalus*)
- **Conservation status:** Least Concern
- **Diet:** Carnivore (mainly fish)
- **Habitat:** Forests near lakes, rivers, and coasts
- **Lifespan:** 20–30 years in the wild
- **Top speed:** 120 km/h (75 mph) in a dive
- **Canonical HTML:** https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/bald-eagle/what-do-bald-eagle-eat/
- **Parent profile:** https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/bald-eagle/
- **Last reviewed:** 2026-07-16

## Quick answer

The bald eagle is a large bird of prey native to North America, recognizable by its white head and tail against a dark brown body. It is not actually bald; "bald" comes from an old word meaning white-headed. Bald eagles mainly eat fish, build the largest tree nests of any North American bird, and can live 20 to 30 years in the wild.

## Who should skip this page

Skip this if you need a captive feeding plan from a veterinarian. This page is wild diet, not a pet-care sheet.

## Behavior and nesting

Bald eagles mate for life and return to the same nest each year, adding material until it becomes the largest tree nest of any North American bird, sometimes weighing over a tonne. They are powerful fliers that can soar for hours on rising air, and they are known to steal fish from ospreys and other birds rather than always catching their own.

## Help protect the Bald Eagle

Even familiar animals lose ground as wild habitat keeps shrinking worldwide.

[Donate to wildlife protection](https://worldanimalrescuenetwork.org/donate/)

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Source: Global Animal Guide (https://globalanimalguide.org/animals/bald-eagle/what-do-bald-eagle-eat/). Licensed CC BY-NC 4.0 — free for non-commercial reuse with attribution.