O.T. - Golden Eagle
On the road this week staying at a crappy hotel in Dirtyass, Alberta; feeling really sorry for myself. Went for a walk after supper last evening and chanced upon a glorious sight - a golden eagle roosting in the upper branches of a dead tree. What a magnificent animal! I stood in awe, furiously taking photos on my phone. After a few minutes of posing for me the eagle took flight and soared in ever widening circles high above my head. I hope that the big boy found a tasty rabbit for his supper.
My heart soared as I watched this spectacular bird. Dirtyass, Alberta has at least one saving grace.
My heart soared as I watched this spectacular bird. Dirtyass, Alberta has at least one saving grace.
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17 comments
Most widely distributed eagle, but despite the broad distribution is has the good sense to steer clear of FloriDUH. Not like those goofy Bald eagles!
Actually, I shouldn't make fun of Florida -- though it is fun to do so. I love to visit and when it comes to avifauna it is a great place. Swallow-tailed kites may not be as big as Golden Eagles but they are beautiful birds. And it also has another really cool raptor -- the burrowing owl. Very unimpressive from a size standpoint (just a bit larger than an American robin) but active during the day and really fun to watch. And dissing Bald eagles is a joke -- they're impressive birds.
Most raptors are reverse size dimorphic so if it was really large it could have been a big girl off for the hunt.
Have you seen gyrfalcons up there?
I haven't seen a gyrfalcon. My impression is that those raptors summer in the high arctic, no?
I have seen peregrine falcons frequently. For years peregrines nested in crannies of highrises in downtown Edmonton and Calgary. I once saw a peregrine falcon take a pigeon mid-air over Prince's Island in central Calgary......a real explosion of feathers when the peregrine struck the pigeon. Very impressive sight and to see it in the centre of a city of 1,250,000.............WOW!
Love peregrines hunting on the wing. They do great in cities.
Humans have always been drawn to top level predators.
There is also a spectacular bird sanctuary in the greater Vancouver area at Ladner, between YVR airport and the Robert's Bank coal export terminal. The Reifel Bird Sanctuary is a very important stop-over on the Pacific flyway for birds migrating back and forth between the Arctic and Central/South America. The Fraser River delta is an amazingly rich feeding ground for hundreds of bird species. If you catch 50,000 snow geese grazing in a field near the sanctuary you will be absolutely breathless in awe.
No 5 Orange is an expensive strip club in Vancouver but it is populated by some dangerously attractive dancers and, with some money in your wallet, fun can be had.
A day of bird watching and an evening at No 5 Orange?.......I have done that more than once in my life.
The mouse pops his head out the eagles butt and sees the ground way down below. He says to the eagle "Hey eagle how high up are we?" The eagle replies "oh we're about 5,000 feet". To that the mouse says "you wouldn't shit me, would you?" :)
Two interesting quotes:
From the EO on USCGC HEALY, "It's not the end of the world, but you can see it from here."
And from the bartender at the Grand Aleutian hotel commenting on the sexual imbalance on the island during crab season (population swells from about 10,000 to 40,000!), "You don't lose your wife here, just your turn." That woman was a stitch!
I love the primal feeling I get when I watch raptors. Just so awe inspiring.
Stanley park is beautiful in August though.
So far I haven't spotted any legendary black panthers in my back yard. If I do, I will try to take pictures to prove it. Of course such a cat would have to jump over a six foot tall fence.
But, like you, I to really enjoy the natural world around me especially the avians. Except for that damn hoot-owl who has taken up residence in an elm tree next to my bedroom! That irritating bitch thinks 5:14 AM is a perfect time to wake me up and she will not stop her "who, who, whooting" and limb rattling until I let a dog out to bark at her. I swear, that owl thinks it is funny to wake me an hour before dawn.
Our "relationship" has gotten so weird that when I returned from a two week trip, the oversized bird actually flew from her hidden nest in the tree to land on the gutter over my garage to hoot her displeasure at my absence. I had a "conversation" with her last night that lasted an hour. It didn't change her mind - at 5:14AM she woke me again this morning. This time I think she also dropped some sticks on the roof.
I now think she also knows when I hit a club in the afternoon. The bitch starts whoing me before I even get out of the car.