Hostile Takeover

I was out at a National Wildlife Refuge today and saw this Bald Eagle eating his lunch. Not a care in the world. Didn't even seem to notice the mallard pair flying over or the Nutria walking nearby:

Wow, TD, those are awesome. Pin sharp. Great storyline, too! Fantastic! Sorry I didn't take you up on your offer to go with you today....

WOAH!!! Nice series of some great behavioural action. Well done. You can be lucky sometimes eh?

puddlepirate44 wrote in post #2615965
Wow, TD, those are awesome. Pin sharp. Great storyline, too! Fantastic! Sorry I didn't take you up on your offer to go with you today....

I tried to tell you!

Thanks for the feedback!

DaleP wrote in post #2615972
WOAH!!! Nice series of some great behavioural action. Well done. You can be lucky sometimes eh?

Thanks. Lucky is good! I almost drove the other direction around the Refuge. Glad I didn't!

A golden eagle looks golden on the back. You can't possibly mistake it. But whats that sneaking through the grass? Looks like a dog or some weird rat. And is the eagle eating a duck? I guess that shoots down the theory they only like fish...

Ah, it's beaver.

Nice shots, Chris!!!! That does look like a Golden to me. Both eagles are beauties.

Very nice storyline and captures. It's a juvenile bald eagle for sure

canonloader wrote in post #2615999
A golden eagle looks golden on the back. You can't possibly mistake it. But whats that sneaking through the grass? Looks like a dog or some weird rat. And is the eagle eating a duck? I guess that shoots down the theory they only like fish...

Ah, it's beaver.

Thanks. They frequently go after ducks, coot, you name it.

That thing sneaking through the grass is a Nutria. It's basically a giant rat. Or a beaver with a rat tail. They were imported from South America (as I recall) for their fur but unfortunatley, they've taken over. They're now considered pests. They burrow into stream banks and destroy them.

I definitely didn't see gold, but it was at least 1.33 times larger than the Bald Eagle.

Maureen Souza wrote in post #2616030
Nice shots, Chris!!!! That does look like a Golden to me. Both eagles are beauties.

Thanks Maureen! I appreciate the feedback.

Could this be the same bird? I took this in early December about 4 miles from where I took today's shots.

Great series! Looks like a wildlife tour in 5 frames

canonloader wrote in post #2615999
A golden eagle looks golden on the back. You can't possibly mistake it. But whats that sneaking through the grass? Looks like a dog or some weird rat. And is the eagle eating a duck? I guess that shoots down the theory they only like fish...

Ah, it's beaver.

well i can tell you right now fors sure that eagles like more than fish. reason being i saw one take down and eat a duck in the water a month ago, it was quite a sight.

Great behavior series!

Juvenile Baldies get full size in their first summer. It could be a Juvie Bald Eagle Female, which are bigger than the male. And it looks like a juvie Baldie to me. It would also explain why the Male gave way.

canonloader wrote in post #2616074
Juvenile Baldies get full size in their first summer. It could be a Juvie Bald Eagle Female, which are bigger than the male. And it looks like a juvie Baldie to me. It would also explain why the Male gave way.

Oh, good thoughts. Hadn't considered that!

Thank you.

That's it, also, Golden don't have that white underwing near the body like in the pic, only near the tip.

I would agree with the consense that it is a female bald eagle and the other is a male (considerably smaller)