Golden Eagle

Aquila chrysaetos

Its scientific name, Aquila, is also a constellation: the eagle said to carry Zeus's thunderbolts in Greek myth. 'Eagle' itself comes from aquila, and chrysaetos is Greek for 'golden eagle,' for the gold feathers on the back of its head.

Aquila is Latin for 'eagle,' possibly from aquilus, 'dark-colored.' Chrysaetos joins the Greek khrusos, 'gold,' and aetos, 'eagle.'