The Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) is a species of raptor that lives in North America. Despite its English name of Bald Eagle ("bald eagle") or its popular denomination of "bald eagle", it is not an eagle of the genus Aquila but an eagle of the genus Haliaeetus: it is 'distinguishes it by its diet, mainly composed of fish, but also by its massive beak and by the fact that its legs are not covered with feathers up to the talons, one of the characteristics of true eagles. While the eagle lives in woodlands and mountains, the eagle prefers lakes, rivers and coastal areas, where it can find its food. As such, it is sometimes referred to as the American “sea eagle” or “fish eagle”. Subdivided into two subspecies, it is found over almost the entire surface of North America, from Alaska in the north to Mexico in the south, on both the Atlantic and Pacific coasts. National emblem of the United States, the species was for a time threatened in this country in the twentieth century.