[crackerd]

Couple days ago I saw a patch of white in a winter wheat field about 600 yards away. Suspected it was a fallen snow goose, and binos confirmed it. Got one of the dogs and lined her up, over a slight rise, to run a blind, and once topping it, she could see the goose from about 350 yards away and ran straight to it. I'd heard no shooting nor done any myself in that direction for several days so the origin of the goose's demise was a mystery. As the dog returned with the bird, its wings were flapping against the wind, so it obviously hadn't been frozen overnight and was a fairly fresh kill.

The dog was 15 feet away with the bird when there came a eureka moment. The entire back side of the goose's head was gone, and even point-blank BBBs mightn't have done that kind of "clean" damage. Assessed it a little more, and the line to the bird just happened to be directly below and about 50 yards away from a pair of bald eagles' nest.

I'd seen the eagles take snows out of the air before, but only over water. This morning I was watching a big flock overhead when it spooked and changed direction--all but one of the geese, which never got the chance. An eagle came up from below and snatched it with talons in the chest, and dropped the goose in almost the exact location as the first bird. Then swooped down for the kill if necessary, though the goose looked dead upon impact. The two of them are eating it now, one feeding, the other "standing watch," then alternating. Magnificent sight.

MG

 

[badbullgator]

Amazing birds aren’t they. You are lucky to see such a thing. We have a lot of them down here and most, in this area anyway, live on or near the coast. From time to time I see them take a bluebill or other bird, but mostly fish. We will often get off the boat and wade fish, sometimes pulling a stringer of fish tied to our waist. On one such occasion my buddy had a large redfish on a stringer and it was still alive. All of a sudden we heard wind from the wings of a very large bird and turned to see an eagle with its talons trying to take off with the fish attached to the stringer. He dropped it and continued to circle a few times before deciding to find something else for dinner. The fish looked like someone had sliced it with razorblades where the bird had grabbed it.
I can also say from experience that I would much rather have an eagle do this than the sharks that do not give up as easy, but that is a story for another time.

 

[Richard Finch]

Bald Eagles

We have several pairs here in the river valley. Very neat birds. I've seen them kill both ducks and geese.


Richard