Despite their beauty and grand reputation, an eagle’s life is very tough. It’s all about survival. Each day is a new day to hunt for food for themselves or their young growing in the nest.
Fighting for territory to build a nest with their life partner – an eagle’s life from nest to parent is one rife with challenges. So, their mortality rate can vary massively.
An eagle faces many dangers; from hunters to other eagles and animals, and even man-made dangers, like electric fences or pesticides. All these point to unnatural causes of why eagles die.
Today, we will explore the natural causes of an eagle’s death. Just like every other animal, these beautiful birds come to the end of their life at some point. But what happens?
Well, I am here to answer that question and a few more. So, keep reading to discover all you need to know about the natural death of an eagle. It’s not as morbid as you might think.
What is the Most Common Way Eagles Die?
Well, a recent study across many years showed that almost 50% of eagles had chronic lead poisoning – with 33% having acute lead poisoning.
Dead animals killed by hunters may still have lead pellets, which poison the animal. When eagles eat from these, lead can get into their system.
Even a tiny amount can impair an eagle’s ability to fly, hunt, and reproduce. It is not something their body or system needs, so once ingested, it acts as a poison. This is very scary and shows the huge hurdle these eagles face in this silent killer.
What Happens When a Bald Eagle Dies?
Humans bury their dead, and only a handful of animals like elephants, chimpanzees, and crows have funeral “rituals.” For most other animals, the bodies of the dead don’t receive the best send-off.
Whenever a bald eagle dies naturally, if it does so in the wild, its body will usually be picked up by scavengers also in need of food. This is a common occurrence in the animal kingdom.
However, due to the many dangers eagles face, humans may come across eagle carcasses from time to time. It is not as simple as simply putting them in the trash. No, these beasts have an honored status and deserve to be respected.
In some cases, they are given to organizations who freeze the eagles, and prepare them in a variety of ways to then hand on to the Native American people. So, despite human factors causing the deaths of many of these birds, some organizations still treat them with the respect they deserve.
But let’s be honest; respect isn’t enough when the cause of death is due to human intervention. This is why it is crucial to work with eagle conservation foundations and government services to ensure that eagles only die of natural causes.
What Do Bald Eagles Do When Their Mate Dies?
The romantic thing about these raptors is that once they mate, they mate for life. The male and female eagles make quite the team. The female protects the nest, while the male finds food for his partner and his young.
This cycle works very well, and then through the rest of their life, these two will always mate with each other as long as they live. Sweet, I know.
But, what happens when one of them dies? It has been long known that eagles mourn the loss of their partner. However, just like with humans, this fact tends to vary. Some eagles find a new partner quickly while others may take a year or two to find a new bird to mate with.
Either way, it is quite endearing to see how eagles respect their partner and support them throughout life, evening mourning them after death.
Do Eagles Die of Old Age?
Eagles can live to an impressive 25 or even 30 years old. But to get to this point in the wild is a huge struggle. Their lives are full of hardships.
Whether this be being eaten by their sibling or simply not being able to fly. The life of an eaglet is extremely hard. Once they grow, the struggle doesn’t end there.
Every day, these eagles hunt for food, and once they mate, they have to provide for their family. They also need to build nests and protect their territory. Fights between eagles can be extremely violent and even fatal.
But if they survive all this, alongside the man-made dangers, eagles can live many years. But those years are incredibly hard to get through.
Eagle Lifespan in Captivity
Despite it being recorded of the grand ages these birds can live to, the majority of them die before their time. 15 to 20 years is the average due to the huge amount of danger listed earlier.
Life in captivity may be less exciting, but eagles generally live a lot longer. It’s no surprise. No other birds to fight, and they get fed regularly, all these factors allow these eagles to consistently live up to between 25 to 30 years of age.
Final Thoughts
So there you go. Quite the life, isn’t it? Bald eagles might seem majestic and strong birds (which they are), but it doesn’t mean their lives are any easier.
A constant battle for survival – food, territory, nesting; the fundamental things every eagle needs are hard to achieve. But despite the ongoing struggle, and the natural deaths being considerably low, these magnificent birds still manage to thrive.
Never backing down from a fight and never stopping to provide for their family, these birds are worthy of applause.
