Notice
how thick the down feathers are. They look more like fur than
feathers.

As the outer
feathers grow in, this down will be covered up by "contour
feathers"--the feathers that will give it that distinctive
eagle appearance. It will take 3 or 4 years for this bird to
grow white feathers on its head and tail.

Do you see
a little bulge on the bird's chest, on its right side?

That is
where the bird's "crop" is. The crop is like a little
sack that sticks out of the esophagus-the tube from the mouth
and throat down into the stomach.

An
eagle can swallow huge chunks of food, even bigger
than its
stomach can hold because the extra food goes into its crop.
Little by little, as the bird's stomach empties, more food
goes into it from the crop.

Looks like
this bird had a good breakfast!

Journaling
Questions

Baby
birds are hatched with almost no feathers. How do they keep warm
before they grow these downy feathers?

Why do
birds need crops? Do you think they eat 3 meals a day like humans
do?