American Bald Eagle vs Gray-chinned Hermit

Haliaeetus leucocephalus compared with Phaethornis griseogularis

Key Differences

• American Bald Eagle is Not Evaluated while Gray-chinned Hermit is Least Concern.

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	American Bald Eagle	Gray-chinned Hermit
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class same	Aves (Birds)	Aves (Birds)
Order	Accipitriformes (Hawks & Eagles)	Apodiformes (Apodiformes)
Family	Accipitridae (Hawks & Eagles)	Trochilidae
Genus	Haliaeetus (Sea Eagles)	Phaethornis
Species	Haliaeetus leucocephalus	Phaethornis griseogularis

Evolutionary Relationship

American Bald Eagle and Gray-chinned Hermit share a common ancestor at the Class level: Aves. (Birds)

Conservation Status

American Bald Eagle

NE — Not Evaluated

Population: ~316.7K

Trend: Increasing ↑

Gray-chinned Hermit

LC — Least Concern

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	American Bald Eagle	Gray-chinned Hermit
Diet	Carnivore	—
Average Lifespan	28 years	—
Average Length	90 cm	—
Average Weight	5.0 kg	—

Habitat & Geographic Range

American Bald Eagle

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and flooded grasslands and savannas, among 10 distinct biome types spanning the Neotropic and Palearctic realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Widely distributed across Europe (8 countries), North America (United States), and South America (Ecuador).

Gray-chinned Hermit

Habitat

Typically found in various aerial, terrestrial, and aquatic environments.

Range

Distributed across Colombia, Ecuador, Norway, and Venezuela.

American Bald Eagle

The national bird of the United States and a symbol of American conservation success, bald eagles have a wingspan of up to 2.4 meters and inhabit forests and wetlands near open water across North America. Powerful aerial predators and scavengers, they specialize in fish but also take waterfowl and carrion. Nearly extinct by the 1960s due to DDT poisoning and hunting, the bald eagle recovered dramatically following pesticide bans and the Endangered Species Act.

Gray-chinned Hermit

A small, inconspicuous hermit hummingbird of dry and humid forests in the Andes from Colombia to Bolivia, gray-chinned hermits have brownish upper parts, grey chin, and pale buff underparts with a white-tipped central tail — a subtle palette compared to many hummingbirds. They inhabit forest understorey and shrubby forest edge at elevations of 300–1,600 meters, following systematic trap-line routes to visit flowering plants. Males gather at leks to attract females through persistent vocalization.

Shared Countries

Both species can be found in 2 countries:

🇪🇨 Ecuador 🇳🇴 Norway