Diet
The Bald Eagle's diet is opportunistic and varied, but most feed mainly on fish. In the Pacific Northwest, spawning trout and salmon provide most of the Bald Eagles' diet.[26]
Locally, eagles may rely largely on carrion, especially in winter, and they will scavenge carcasses up to the size of whales, though it seems that carcasses of ungulates and large fish are preferred. They also may sometimes feed on subsistence scavenged or stolen from campsites and picnics, as well as garbage dumps. Mammalian prey includes rabbits, hares, raccoons, muskrats, beavers, and deer fawns. Preferred avian prey includes grebes, alcids, ducks, gulls, coots, egrets, and geese. Most live prey are quite a bit smaller than the eagle, but predatory attacks on larger birds such as swans have been recorded. Reptiles, amphibians and crustaceans (especially crabs) are preyed on when available.
With a freshly caught fish.
To hunt fish, easily their most important live prey, the eagle swoops down over the water and snatches the fish out of the water with its talons. They eat by holding the fish in one claw and tearing the flesh with the other. Eagles have structures on their toes called spiricules that allow them to grasp fish. Osprey also have this adaptation.[24] Bald Eagles have powerful talons and have been recorded flying with a 15-pound Mule Deer fawn.[27] It has been estimated that the gripping power (pounds by square inch) of the bald eagle is ten times greater than that of a human.[28] Sometimes, if the fish is too heavy to lift, the eagle will be dragged into the water. It may swim to safety, but some eagles drown or succumb to hypothermia. When competing for food, eagles will usually dominate other fish-eaters and scavengers, aggressively displacing mammals such as coyotes and foxes, and birds such as corvids, gulls, vultures and other raptors. Bald Eagles may be displaced by themselves or by Golden Eagles. Neither species is known to be dominant, and the outcome depends on the individual animal. Occasionally, Bald Eagles will steal fish and other prey away from smaller raptors, such as Ospreys, a practice known as kleptoparasitism.[29] Healthy adult Bald Eagles are not preyed on in the wild and are thus considered apex predators.[30] In one case, an adult eagle investigating a Peregrine Falcon nest for prey items sustained a concussion from a swooping parent Peregrine, and ultimately died days later from it.[31]
That’s one lucky pup. She somehow got a huge raptor to drop her, and from a low-enough altitude that she wasn’t further injured. Then the SPCA took over and helped with her medical needs (talon wounds, broken ribs, and general neglect) and solicited donors to pay for that. When she’s better, the pup, “May,” will be adopted. And she deserves a happy family.