American Bald Eagle vs large flying fox

Haliaeetus leucocephalus compared with Pteropus vampyrus

Key Differences

• American Bald Eagle is Not Evaluated while large flying fox is Near Threatened.
• American Bald Eagle is carnivore while large flying fox is herbivore.
• American Bald Eagle is 4.5x heavier than large flying fox.
• American Bald Eagle lives longer (28 years vs 15 years).

Taxonomic Classification

Rank	American Bald Eagle	large flying fox
Kingdom same	Animalia (Animals)	Animalia (Animals)
Phylum same	Chordata (Chordates)	Chordata (Chordates)
Class	Aves (Birds)	Mammalia (Mammals)
Order	Accipitriformes (Hawks & Eagles)	Chiroptera (Bats)
Family	Accipitridae (Hawks & Eagles)	Pteropodidae (Fruit Bats)
Genus	Haliaeetus (Sea Eagles)	Pteropus (Flying Foxes)
Species	Haliaeetus leucocephalus	Pteropus vampyrus

Evolutionary Relationship

American Bald Eagle and large flying fox share a common ancestor at the Phylum level: Chordata. (Chordates)

Conservation Status

American Bald Eagle

NE — Not Evaluated

Population: ~316.7K

Trend: Increasing ↑

large flying fox

NT — Near Threatened

Trend: Decreasing ↓

Physical Characteristics

Attribute	American Bald Eagle	large flying fox
Diet	Carnivore	Herbivore
Average Lifespan	28 years	15 years
Average Length	90 cm	30 cm
Average Weight	5.0 kg	1.1 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).

large flying fox

Habitat

Found across multiple habitat types including tropical and subtropical moist broadleaf forests, tropical and subtropical dry broadleaf forests, and tropical and subtropical grasslands and savannas, among 6 distinct biome types spanning the Australasia and Indomalayan realms. Populations are also found in montane and highland environments at higher elevations.

Range

Distributed across Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines, and Thailand. Listed as Near Threatened, this species requires ongoing monitoring to prevent population decline.

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.

large flying fox

The world's largest bat species, large flying foxes have wingspans reaching 1.5 meters and inhabit tropical forests from Southeast Asia to the Philippines and Indonesia. Despite the alarming name, they feed exclusively on fruit and nectar, making them vital pollinators and seed dispersers for tropical forest trees. Roost in massive colonies of thousands. Listed as Vulnerable due to hunting for bushmeat and habitat destruction.