SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 



1. The golden eagle is widely dis- 

 tributed in mountains and adjacent 

 plains throughout nnich of tlie 

 Xorthern Hemisphere. Its princi- 

 pal breeding range in North Amer- 

 ica extends from the Arctic Ocean 

 south into Mexico, westward from 

 the 99th meridian. As it nests from 

 near sea level to timberline, it may 

 be found in a wide variety of hab- 

 itats, and in winter it occurs prac- 

 tically throughout this country. Its 

 food habits are as varied as the di- 

 versified habitats in which it lives. 



'1. Tlie golden eagle has been 

 known to kill and eat more than 60 

 (lifl'erent kinds of animals ranging 

 from full-grown deer and antelope 

 to mice, birds, frogs, and insects. 

 Both living creatures and dead are 

 included in its diet, and at times it 

 accepts carrion even though living 

 prey is available. 



3. Rabbits and rodents form the 

 staple diet of the golden eagle, the 

 proportion taken varying with local 

 conditions. During the nesting 

 season on a Colorado antelope 

 range, rabbits supplied most of the 

 golden eagles' food; under winter 

 conditions on a North Dakota 

 pheasant refuge, they comprised 

 approximately 19 percent. 



4. On occasion, the bird will kill 

 adult and young antelope, although 

 in northern Colorado, where four 

 pairs of eagles nested in close prox- 

 imity to antelope at fawning time 

 sucli predation was negligible. 



5. Although the golden eagle will 

 kill either the adult or the young 

 of deer, no evidence was found to 

 indicate that the bird is more than 



a minor influence when compared 

 to other factors controlling deer 

 ])opulations. 



G. One fairly conclusive account 

 of golden-eagle predation on a big- 

 horn lamb is cited, but available in- 

 formation indicates that any danger 

 to bighorn sheep either in decimat- 

 ing populations or inhibiting their 

 restoration has been relatively 

 minor. 



7. Depending on local conditions, 

 the golden eagle exerts a varying 

 pressure on upland game birds, 

 and at times this pressure may be 

 sufficient to warrant eagle control. 

 Harassment of upland game, thus 

 keeping it from feeding properly in 

 severe Aveather, may be more serious 

 than the actual killing activities of 

 the eagle. That being the case, it 

 appears that time and effort might 

 be wisely spent in developing cover 

 which will give permanent protec- 

 tion from the golden eagle rather 

 than in assuming the never-ending 

 task of control. Golden eagles kill 

 wild turkeys, but the significance of 

 this activity on present-day wild- 

 turkey populations was not deter- 

 mined in this study. 



8. When nesting in the vicinity 

 of waterfowl areas, the golden eagle 

 may feed its young largely on water- 

 fowl. In one study cited, it was 

 shown that pressure on waterfowl 

 was applied principally by a pair of 

 eagles in whose nesting territory the 

 ])rey was found. 



9. Golden eagles at times kill do- 

 mestic lambs. The extent of this 

 damage varies with local conditions. 

 Conservative local control, properly 



31 



