Steller’s sea eagle

Haliaeetus pelagicus

The image shows the text xibxib in lowercase, teal-colored letters on a light gray background.
A close-up of a Stellers sea eagle with a yellow beak, dark brown feathers, and white wing patches, standing against a snowy, blurred background.

One of the world’s largest eagles

Steller’s sea eagles are closely related to our local bald eagles, but they live on the coast of Northern Asia. The eagles have an 8-foot wingspan and their bulky nests are often just as wide. They raise their young along rivers or sea cliffs where fish are plentiful.

A large Steller sea eagle with a yellow beak and white, black, and brown feathers sits in a nest made of sticks at the base of a tree trunk, looking intently to the side.
Male and female eagles work together to build their nests. We bring in branches from around the zoo for our eagles to work with.

Steller’s Sea Eagle Range

Based on 2016 official IUCN range
Map showing the range of Steller’s Sea Eagle along coastal northeastern Russia, extending south to the Korean Peninsula and parts of Japan, based on the 2016 official IUCN range.
A large eagle with dark wings, white tail and shoulders, and a yellow beak swoops low over rippling blue water, extending its talons as if to catch prey.
Eagles swoop down and snag fish out of shallow water with their strong talons.

Diet: Fish, especially salmon and trout. Will scavenge dead fish and carcasses of deer, seals and whales. Seabirds are a major diet component in parts of their range.

Range: Coastlines and rivers in China, Japan, eastern Russia and the Korean Peninsula.

Global conservation status: Vulnerable.

A large eagle is perched on a small ice floe floating in calm, reflective water during twilight, with soft pink and blue hues in the background.
A Steller’s sea eagle fishes from floating sea ice near Hokkaido, Japan.

Protecting Fish, Protecting Forests

The threats to Steller’s sea eagles affect many other species, too.

Four large Steller’s sea eagles with yellow beaks perch on leafless tree branches against a clear blue sky. The birds appear to be interacting with each other.
Steller’s sea eagles gathering in the coastal forests of Hokkaido, Japan.

Steller’s sea eagle numbers are falling. What can we do to help?

Black FSC logo showing a stylized tree made of simple lines, with a check mark forming part of the tree outline. The letters FSC appear in bold below the tree.

Logging in forests destroys eagle habitat. Buying sustainable wood and paper products helps. Look for the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) logo!

A Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch consumer guide with a yellowfin tuna illustration on the cover.

Overfishing makes it difficult for eagles to find food. Buying sustainable seafood helps. Seafoodwatch.org has shopping tips, from salmon to sushi.

A bald eagle stands in a large nest made of sticks, perched in the branches of a pine tree, surrounded by green needles and blue sky.
Bald eagles are North American relatives of the Steller’s sea eagle. Some years, they nest right here on zoo grounds!

Finding hope in bald eagle recovery

In the 1960s and 1970s, eggshell thinning caused by the insecticide DDT wiped out huge numbers of bald eagles. Banning this chemical in North America has let our local eagles bounce back. Today, industrial chemicals—including DDT—are still polluting Steller’s sea eagle habitat. The Pacific Ocean connects us to the coast of Asia. Can we use what we learned about protecting our local bald eagles to save.