This is an educational video I created for students and eagle lovers who wish to learn about some of the anatomy of the bald eagle. Harriet is incubating her eggs - it is a warm day in SW Florida and she is panting to cool off. We get to see amazing closeups of her tongue barbs also called rear-directed papillae, her glottis (hole in the back of her throat) and her tail rectrices & coverts.
The tongue of a bald eagle is extremely sensitive and filled with tactile sensory corpuscles. Notice the backward facing tongue barbs and the hole in the back of his throat known as the glottis. The tongue barbs are also called "rear directed papillae" and aid in the swallowing of food. The hole in the tongue is the “glottis” which is the entrance to the larynx and trachea which is known as the windpipe. The glottis closes during swallowing. These actions help prevent choking when swallowing large pieces of prey.
Tail feathers (rectrices) and their coverts function in flight. They serve as a rudder and stabilize flight movement.
To learn more about the tongue barbs here is an excellent article written by John Howe Raptor Resource Project:
Thank you for watching!
Video captured & edited by Lady Hawk
Thank you SWFEC , hosted by Dick Pritchett Real Estate, for allowing us the opportunity to view these amazing eagles.
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