Last Updated on March 12, 2024 by themubbi63
Found throughout the northern hemisphere, the golden eagle (Aquila chrysaetos) is one of the most magnificent eagles in the world. It often gets included in the lists of five largest eagles, because of its enormous wingspan. However, where height and weight is concerned, it’s not one of the biggest eagles. Called a golden eagle because of the distinctive brown-gold plumage on their napes, they’re truly a sight worth seeing.
Golden Eagle Height
Golden Eagles are found throughout the continents of Asia, Europe and North America. In North America, they’re one of the largest birds. Measuring between 26 inches (66 cm) for the smallest males to 40 inches (102 cm) for the biggest females, these birds aren’t anything to sneer at.
Like with many big birds of prey, the females are often bigger than the males. The size difference, interestingly, differs according to the subspecies. The female Himalayan golden eagles can be as much as 37 percent heavier than the males and have much longer wings.
| Animal | Inches | Centimeters |
| Golden Eagle | 26 – 40 | 66 – 102 |
Golden Eagle Weight
Golden eagles tend to be slimmer and more streamlined than others of their kind. Thus, they’re surprisingly small and light for their enormous wings. Weight wise, they don’t really compare to the biggest eagles like the harpy eagle or the Steller’s sea eagle at all.
There’s also the fact that there’s many subspecies of the golden eagle. Since they are so widespread, different groups have different weight ranges. The Japanese golden eagle is the smallest of them all.
A male golden eagle can weigh anywhere between 5.5 and 8.9 lb (2.5 – 4.05 kg) while the female can be 7.2 – 14 lb (3.25 – 6.35 kg). There have been females discovered that weighed as much as 15 lb or 17 lb but they’re the outliers.
| Golden Eagle | Pounds | Kilograms |
| Males | 5.5 – 8.9 | 2.5 – 4.05 |
| Females | 7.2 – 14 | 3.25 – 6.35 |
Golden Eagle Wingspan and Talons
This is truly where the golden eagle shines. It might not be as big as some other species, like the bald eagle. But it does have a very large wingspan. The fact that it mostly lives in wide open spaces and not inside forests allows it to have an enormous wingspan as compared to its body size.
Golden eagles have the fifth longest wingspan of any eagle in the world. Generally, the wingspan of a golden eagle can range between 6 feet (183 cm) and 7.5 feet (229 cm). However, there has been a record of a wild female with a wingspan of 8 feet 4 inches (254 cm) and of a captive bird with a wingspan of 9 feet 3 inches (282 cm).
The talons of a golden eagle range between 1.77 and 2.50 inches (4.5 – 6.34 cm). This is longer than the talons of a bald eagle but shorter than those of a harpy eagle.
Golden Eagle Clutch Size
Golden eagles, like many of their species, mate for life. They have elaborate mating rituals to choose their partners and build their nests high up in mountains and cliffsides. These nests are usually very big, being 5 – 6 feet (152 – 183 cm) in diameter.
Golden eagles usually lay between 1 and 3 eggs at a time, although the latter is rare. These eggs are 2.7 – 3.4 inches (6.8 – 8.6 cm) in length and 1.9 – 2.5 inches (4.9 – 6.4 cm) wide.
Golden Eagle Baby Size
Baby golden eagles are usually only a couple of inches long and weigh no more than 3 oz. The chicks have to break open their eggs themselves during the hatching process.
They grow very fast during those first few days. By the time they’re 20 days old, they weigh around 1.1 lb or 0.5 kg. They only begin to fly around the 2 month mark although it takes them much longer to be able to attain the same heights as their parents.
Golden Eagle Comparison to Humans
Maybe trying to visualize a golden eagle side by side with a human would give a better idea of its size. An average man is about 5 feet 9 inches or 175 cm in height. A golden eagle, on the other hand, could be anywhere between 66 and 102 cm. Clearly, this is much smaller than a human.
However, the wingspan of a golden eagle could easily outshine the height of the average man. Being an average of 200 cm from one wingtip to the other, this would be taller than most humans.
Golden Eagle Vs Bald Eagle Size Comparison
In North America, golden eagles and bald eagles coexist in many of the same spaces. Thus, it’s easy to compare the two. In fact, people might confuse one with the other, even though the color of their plumage is quite distinct. Bald eagles can be distinguished by their white heads.
The bald eagle is generally bigger and heavier than the golden eagle even though the wings of the golden eagle are often longer. Measuring between 71 and 96 cm in height to the golden eagle’s 66 – 102 cm, the average bald eagle usually stands taller. Its mean weight of 10 – 11 lb is also more than the mean weight of a golden eagle at about 8 – 9 lb.
| Animal | Height | Weight | Wingspan |
| Golden Eagle | 66 – 102 cm (2.1 – 3.3 feet) | 2.5 – 6 kg (5.5 – 14 lb) | 183 – 254 cm (6 – 8.3 feet) |
| Bald Eagle | 71 – 96 cm (2.3 – 3.1 feet) | 3 – 6 kg (7 – 14 lb) | 180 – 230 cm (5.9 – 7.5 feet) |
Golden Eagle Vs Verreaux’s Eagle Size Comparison
Among the genus of Aquila, the eagle that is most similar to the golden eagle in size and body shape is Verreaux’s Eagle. These African eagles are slightly longer than the golden eagle. But their wings certainly aren’t as long.
Verreaux’s eagle eing about 75 – 96 cm in height and 6.6 – 15.4 lb in weight, both these eagles are pretty much in the same range. They only coexist in parts of the Ethiopian Bale Mountains, however.
| Animal | Height | Weight | Wingspan |
| Golden Eagle | 66 – 102 cm (2.1 – 3.3 feet) | 2.5 – 6 kg (5.5 – 14 lb) | 183 – 254 cm (6 – 8.3 feet) |
| Verreaux’s Eagle | 75 – 96 cm (2.4 – 3.1 feet) | 3 – 7 kg (6.6 – 15.4 lb) | 181 – 230 cm (5.9 – 7.5 feet) |
Conclusion
And that’s all you need to know about the size of golden eagles. I hope this article was helpful and you were able to get something valuable from it.