<P> Red , white , and green are the colors of the national liberation army in Mexico . The central emblem is the Mexican coat of arms , based on the Aztec symbol for Tenochtitlan ( now Mexico City ) , the center of the Aztec empire . It recalls the legend of an eagle sitting on a cactus while devouring a serpent that signaled to the Aztecs where to found their city , Tenochtitlan . A ribbon in the national colors is at the bottom of the coat of arms . Throughout history , the flag has changed several times , as the design of the coat of arms and the length - width ratios of the flag have been modified . However , the coat of arms has had the same features throughout : an eagle , holding a serpent in its talon , is perched on top of a prickly pear cactus ; the cactus is situated on a rock that rises above a lake . The coat of arms is derived from an Aztec legend that their gods told them to build a city where they spot an eagle on a nopal eating a serpent , which is now Mexico City . </P>
<P> Red , white , and green are the colors of the national liberation army in Mexico . The central emblem is the Mexican coat of arms , based on the Aztec symbol for Tenochtitlan ( now Mexico City ) , the center of the Aztec empire . It recalls the legend of an eagle sitting on a cactus while devouring a serpent that signaled to the Aztecs where to found their city , Tenochtitlan . A ribbon in the national colors is at the bottom of the coat of arms . Throughout history , the flag has changed several times , as the design of the coat of arms and the length - width ratios of the flag have been modified . However , the coat of arms has had the same features throughout : an eagle , holding a serpent in its talon , is perched on top of a prickly pear cactus ; the cactus is situated on a rock that rises above a lake . The coat of arms is derived from an Aztec legend that their gods told them to build a city where they spot an eagle on a nopal eating a serpent , which is now Mexico City . </P>
what type of bird is on mexico 's flag
what type of bird is on mexico 's flag
eagle
eagle