Aquila chrysaetos

Order: Birds of Prey (Accipitriformes)

Family: Hawkweed (Accipitridae)

Size: 80 – 100 cm

Span: ca. 190 – 230 cm

Weight: 2.800 – 6.700 g

The golden eagle is rightly considered by many to be the king of the skies. Despite his size, the golden eagle always looks very elegant and light in flight. As the most widespread representative of the genus Aquila, through centuries of being massively hunted, its territory is today very fragmented. Golden eagles are very faithful birds that remain faithful to their partner for a lifetime. And an eagles life can be very long. In the wild they age up to 30 years old. The oldest known golden eagle in a zoo, however, was 94 years old. The main prey of the golden eagle are marmots, but also carrion and game, hares, ground squirrels, chamois, wild boars, foxes and even wolves and deer. However, the golden eagle, like all other birds of prey, mainly captures old, sick and weakened animals, as these are much easier to catch.