I waited for over an hour for this eagle to take off. The light was waning away when he finally did. He looks very determined. Was that what my face looked like while I was concentrating on the shot?
Patience
Tag: Eagle
Rest my tail feathers
One of my resident baldy’s came down to rest on the piling in front of my house. He’d been in a 20 minute tussle with several gulls that were pulling at his tail feathers. It always amazes me to see this because eagles routinely EAT GULLS.
My motto is don’t poke the bear…but it seems these gulls had had enough!
When it itches…scratch it
My resident eagle on the old dock post.
Avian hunters II
Yesterday’s post caught an eagle near Dungeness Recreation Area after a nearby field was hayed. Here’s another next to a freshly hayed field. It was one of several that hunted as haying equipment cut down tall field grasses.
Farmers begin haying in June and work long hours through the summer cutting hay, baling, and moving it to storage. Eagles pay serious attention to their work habits.
Avian hunters I
This is the time of year when many open fields in the area are hayed — the grass is cut and gathered into bales for feed. The process exposes little animals like voles and field mice and means lunch for the likes of eagles. If you’re near fields that are being hayed you can often find eagles on the wing or nearby as they take advantage of easier pickings.
Until I moved to Sequim I’d seen about three bald eagles in my life, all at great distance. It’s frankly awesome to see them regularly, and so close. This one was about 20 feet away at the Dungeness Recreation Area, next to a newly hayed field. And, naturally, it was on a day I didn’t have a telephoto lens. Tomorrow I’ll post another eagle shot.