Bald Eagles and bad neighbors

[HuntingGold]

I've been driving about lately to do some dog training. I train retrievers and we need new training grounds from time to time to change things up. I live in the Klamath Basin which sits in Southern Oregon and includes some of Northern California. While out and about my wife took the pictures of this eagle.

On an earlier trip, three eagles were on a dead rabbit. My dad just got a new phone and had troubles getting the picture. He finally got the below picture but only one remained. Of note, the neighbor accidentally left his plane out and is in the photo. Note the bald eagle painted on the tail. I called and told him he forgot to hanger his puddle jumper again and he told me to piss off. Either way... Enjoy the pics.

 

[HuntingGold]

 

[cpr0312]

Wow! Cool and thanks for sharing!

 

[HuntingGold]

I thought it would be a fun diversion to share pics from around my neighborhood.

 

[Wyatt Smith]

It’s hard to imagine how big these birds are. I saw one sitting atop of a dead deer a while back, they are huge.

 

[WebleyGreene455]

It’s hard to imagine how big these birds are. I saw one sitting atop of a dead deer a while back, they are huge.

I'm still struck by how people use golden eagles for falconry, on foxes and wolves. Small wolves, but still wolves. The French, it seems, have trained them to take down small drones.

You just don't realize the size of the things until you see one up close and in person, bald and golden both. Even videos and photos where you can plainly see it's a BIG bird don't really click until it's in person.

 

[yhc]

Nice pictures @HuntingGold
If you don’t mind, I will share a couple pictures of our national bird.

These pictures are from fall of 2020 on Kodiak Island. How many bald eagles do you see?

And while chasing after a Kodiak brown bear, we found this “wing print” of a bald eagle taking off after eating a salmon. Wing feathers on each ends and the tail feathers in the middle.

 

[sestoppelman]

We have lots of them here in the Skagit Valley of WA state, sort of famous for them.

 

[HuntingGold]

Nice pics and thanks for sharing.

The Klamath hosts the largest wintering population of Bald Eagles in the lower 48. The most I've seen locally at one location was well over 30 in one field. More were seen that day from other locations. I understand we don't have the same numbers as many locations in Alaska. However we still get large numbers of tourists to the area to look at and photograph our birds. We also have a resident breeding population.

 

[HuntingGold]

We posted about the same time @sestoppelman

Kinda fun to have them around

 

[sestoppelman]

Nice pictures @HuntingGold
If you don’t mind, I will share a couple pictures of our national bird.

These pictures are from fall of 2020 on Kodiak Island. How many bald eagles do you see?

View attachment 448506

And while chasing after a Kodiak brown bear, we found this “wing print” of a bald eagle taking off after eating a salmon. Wing feathers on each ends and the tail feathers in the middle.

View attachment 448507

3 that are obvious, possible fourth on the left side of the pic way out on a limb.

 

[sestoppelman]

Bald Eagle Population Estimates (For 49 U.S. States) - Wildlife Informer

Bald eagles have made a comeback from being critically endangered. In this article we dive into bald eagle population of each U.S. state.

wildlifeinformer.com

I found this interesting. Probably not current. It lists WA state as having 900 breeding pairs which ranks very high on this list.
It also mentions the Skagit Valley where I live as a good place to see them.
Another site I saw said that Florida actually has more eagles than any state! Whodathunkit?

 

[Cam Moon]

3 that are obvious, possible fourth on the left side of the pic way out on a limb.

4 on the RHS. The fourth is hard to see. Look below and to the right of the 3 you saw. There may be more, but I'm looking on a scratched up cell phone.

 

[Shootist43]

I live in southeastern Michigan; we have a pair of nesting / breeding eagles about a mile from me. Once in a while I see one in my back yard. They are truly majestic. A couple of interesting facts about them, the females are larger than the males, seven pounds or so on average and they mate for life. Males weigh around 13 Lbs. while the females go around 20.

 

[Ryan]

I took that shot years ago in Dutch Harbor Alaska. I was maybe five feet from it as it perched on a dumpster. Ha ha.

They're everywhere out there. I was fighting a dolly varden char near the shore once and had one swoop down and miss grabbing that fish by inches.

 

[HuntingGold]

@sestoppelman
I found the article quite interesting. I've always been told the Klamath Basin birds were the largest wintering population but maybe that's no longer true. The Florida population numbers surprised me as did a few other states, pleasantly surprised.

 

[yhc]

4 on the RHS. The fourth is hard to see. Look below and to the right of the 3 you saw. There may be more, but I'm looking on a scratched up cell phone.

Yup you got it. There indeed is a juvenile bald eagle sitting on the branch right below the other 3.

While driving around the town after the hunt, we saw around 30-40 bald eagle in one area…near the town’s landfill. Like how you would expect to see seagulls. Though there were so many of them it just wasn’t picture worthy.

 

[thi9elsp]

I live on the gulf coast of Florida about an hour north of Tampa. We have a resident pair and then some that migrate during the winter. The eagle in the photo below was eating a fish near the Dollar General parking lot. The hawk was on the 8th hole the other day. Of course, I 3 putted for a bogie! Awwk! It never gets old seeing raptors.

 

[WebleyGreene455]

Yup you got it. There indeed is a juvenile bald eagle sitting on the branch right below the other 3.

While driving around the town after the hunt, we saw around 30-40 bald eagle in one area…near the town’s landfill. Like how you would expect to see seagulls. Though there were so many of them it just wasn’t picture worthy.

I'm certain I see five. Looks like there's one on the ground.

 

[Newboomer]

We have several bald and golden eagles here in the Carson Valley area and it's a big tourist attraction during calving season. The eagles feed on the afterbirth. The goldens are quite a bit larger than the balds and it's quite the spectacle when they tangle.