Adult Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) are easily identifiable because of their white heads, but it actually takes four years for them to grow “bald.” In earlier stages of development their beaks and eyes are dark and their feathers are mottled. Experienced birders can tell the precise age of a juvenile by bald eagle simply by its coloration.
This juvenile eagle that I was excited to photograph on Tuesday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge appears to be about two to three years old. The beak has turned yellow excepted for the tip and its eyes, which are dark brown when they are really young, look like they are starting to get almost as light as those of an adult. If you want to learn more about the developmental stages of a bald eagle, check out this interesting article by Avian Report on Juvenile and Immature Bald Eagles.
The young eagle was flying above the water, apparently looking for fish, when I captured these images. I tracked it for quite a while, but never did see it pull a fish out of the water. Still, I was happy with my images and definitely enjoyed my time basking in the warmth of a sunny spring-like day as I watched and waited.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Nice Mike! Always enjoy your Eagle images!
Nice to learn something about the different stages Mike !
I like the shot of the underside of his feathers. It shows the different colors very well.
Beautiful color pattern!
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Fantastic photos of the immature bald eagle, Mike. Nice that you could capture the many colors in the wings and the beginnings of the white head. And the link you provided to the Avian Report article is the best article I have ever seen on the different stages of bald eagles. They are tricky to pinpoint in age, but this article helps enormously. Gulls are another one with many years of maturing, sometimes difficult to identify. Wonderful celebration of our national bird here, thank you.
Thanks, Jet. I’m learning more and more as I go along, though as I am preparing a blog posting like this, I feel like the substitute teacher who has only read one chapter ahead of what the students are to read. 🙂
Great shots Mike! I never tire of watching Eagles. They are amazing! 😃
I am glad to hear that, Jill. I too never get tired of seeing and photographing eagles, but sometimes worry that I am oversaturating my blog with images of them. 🙂