What the Reports Say: teacher key

Harpy Eagles, grade 8 edition, written for 8th grade. Harpy eagle sizes, talons and nests, with the places where reports differ, and how the birds have declined and been bred in captivity.

Read the book. Print this page for the key.

Questions and answers

1. What do the two reports of the rear talon length show?
   • They differ: about 3 to 4 inches and up to 7 cm (answer)
   • They are exactly the same
   • No one has reported any
2. In the dark rainforest, which matters more to a harpy eagle?
   • Vision
   • Hearing (answer)
   • Color
3. How long can a harpy eagle go without food?
   • A week or more (answer)
   • One hour
   • Only a day
4. A young eagle stays within about 100 meters of the nest for at least 15 months. What does that suggest?
   • Young eagles do not travel far at first (answer)
   • Young eagles leave at one month
   • Young eagles live in another country
5. What did the Peregrine Fund say it was the first to do?
   • Count all the nests
   • Set up a program to breed harpy eagles in captivity and release them (answer)
   • Tag every eagle
6. What does 'flagship species' say about the harpy eagle in Panama?
   • It is a symbol for its rain forests (answer)
   • It is the smallest bird
   • It lives only in zoos

Words

• talon: a bird's claw
• territory: claimed area
• nestling: baby bird
• flagship: symbol species