Bald Eagle - Our National Symbol - Vol. #5

Welcome to Vol. #5 of a thread designed to provide a photo exhibition of the Bald Eagles that reside in or migrate to the Chesapeake Bay region of Eastern United States. I consider myself privileged in that they have allowed me into their world, a world that was almost destroyed by the human use of DDT. Their recovery is a remarkable story by itself. Photos do tell a story. It becomes upfront and personal when you learn their names and you follow their journeys. You are saddened when you learn of one's demise and you are overjoyed when you learn of a successful nesting season. There is so much that goes on behind the scene that I encourage others to look beyond the photos and enjoy the stories, some yet to be told.

Should you wish to return to the previous thread, here is the link - http://davesgarden.com/community/forums/t/1056744/

Here is an opening photo of an adult Bald Eagle that recently touched down on the water as you can see a few drops of water trailing him as he glides by. So let's begin ........

Here is an adult preening itself as he sits in a tree right behind me. One can't have it any easier. I drive in along the river right below the dam breast. I park my car, get out my camera and tripod and walk about 20 feet where I set up right above the water. I stand pretty much at the same location (so I don't lose my spot) for 6 to 7 hours at a time. I often don't even bother with the eagles right behind me. Last week when I left there were at least 10 sitting at different locations on the hill behind me that I didn't even bother to photograph. I try to get there by 7:30 a.m in order to secure a parking spot. The area does attract a lot of visitors.

As Mrs. Ed mentioned on the previous thread, it has been a little warmer than usual. Although this past week is usually considered the peak week, the numbers haven't supported that this year. Perhaps it will get better. Other factors also come into play. I am showing the attached image only to illustrate a point. This photo is a 100% crop and taken from about 1/2 mile.

When the dam starts to generate power the water level of the river rises a foot or two. If you look at the photo, you will note a few pools of water. When the water level rises it brings fish into these pools. As soon as they stop generating power the water level drops and the fish are trapped in the pools. It's like a smorgasbord for the eagles who then don't even have to fish on the river. They lazily sit around all day until they get hungry and then "walk" to a pool and pluck a fish from their "aquarium".

This message was edited Dec 2, 2009 8:06 AM

An adult checking out the waters below .........

An immature showing off his wingspread ......

Another adult image ........

A close-up of a Bald Eagle's talons ........

"Hello, down there" ...........

I don't think I have posted this one before. A pretty nice catch. I'm trying to determine if they are ambidextrous.

An adult gliding through the air with the greatest of ease .........

I don't know if this is 'Hudson' but if you look closely he has a blue tag on his right leg. Today, I received an e-mail from the Endangered Species Unit of the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation regarding the photo of Hudson (Tag S-47) that I reported to a Virginia Authority. It shows how the various state departments interact with each other. If you haven't visited the site I provided earlier on the other thread, you should do so. Click on Hudson about half-way down the page. If you click on the animated map you can see his journey.

http://www.wildlifetracking.org/index.shtml?project_id=349

This guy looks like he means business .......

Great shots as usual Linth! And thanks for the link!

Awesome shots Linth! Thanks for starting a new thread. We look forward to seeing more of these fabulous creatures.

With Linth's permisson I compiled several of his photos into a slide show, set to music that I'd like to share with you all. I hope you enjoy it. I like to play it in the mornings to start my day.

http://www.uniquetreasures.phanfare.com/4455084#imageID=87289170

Janet

Linth, your photos just get better and better! I'd forgotten how many hours you spend just watching and photographing. What a sight to see when you turn around to see more eagles behind you!! Wow.

That shot with the flying fish was spectacular and breathtaking. Beautiful work.

Janet, you did a wonderful job with your slide show and music. What a great tribute to a beautiful bird and to Linth.

Thank you, though I didn't really have much to do with it. :-) I've always been a big fan of the bald eagle and love seeing Linth's photos without having to click back and forth through them.

Great shots Linth!

Wonderful job on the slideshow Janet! The Ray Charles version is my favorite.

Janet, you must have spent a lot of time arranging them. What a wonderful way to view Linth's spectacular pictures.

Thank you for sharing the slideshow with us.

Dave

This message was edited Dec 2, 2009 3:38 PM

I'm glad you all enjoy the slideshow. Every time I'd open one of the photos of these magnificent birds I kept thinking about how neat it would be to have them in a show because each photo was better than the one before it.

There's a talk show here in the mornings that signs off with some patriotic music each morning. Most mornings the host chooses Ray Charles and I always stop what I'm doing (sometimes even pulling over on the road) to just sit there and listen. I get goosebumps each time I hear him singing it. While I listen, I'd keep imagining the incredible majesty of these beautiful eagles in my mind and the freedom that they represent. That gave me the inspiration to make this show. So now, I don't have to wait for that particular hour to get my "fix" of either the eagles or the music. :-)

Wonderful slideshow Janet! I've bookmarked it. So glad to see those beautiful pictures set in a slideshow to great music. I have so enjoyed the eagles (and the "on the waterfront" thread) for the last few years.

Janet did a great job with the slideshow and I appreciate her using my photos. She put a lot of time and effort into it. Thanks, again, Janet.

Last weekend, I arrived at the Conowingo Dam at 7:30 a.m. 15 minutes later, I got this shot of an eagle catching a fish as he flies into the morning sunlight. For the next 6 hours, I did not get another fishing shot. I saw a lot of eagles with a fish but they didn't catch it near me.

This is the second image I took. I actually missed his dive into the river. Too early in the morning, I guess !

And, the third pic .......

The fourth .......

Fifth, and last, of this Bald Eagle's early morning catch ......

Here is a nice adult Bald Eagle with pretty good lighting. Lighting is my biggest frustration .....

JuneyBug, I'm sure I will be bringing back my "On the Waterfront" thread. Although photographing the Bald Eagle is tremendously exhilarating, I probably prefer the variety of waterfowl species that I will soon be photographing on or near the waterfront, after the first of the year. Migration tends to often bring in some unexpected visitors. Last year, I missed the Snowy Owl by one city block (he was sitting on the roof of a house).

Another flight shot of an adult Bald Eagle .....

I took this photo from the same spot that I stand at all day. They were sitting right behind my back but I didn't try to get a better position. The lighting was poor from my direction.

These are beautiful. It's nice seeing the different colors in his wings.

Two adults in the same pic ........ don't recall if they were in a chase. I don't see a fish.

Beautiful, Linth.

Janet, I tried several times to view the slideshow, but wasn't able to. Maybe it doesn't let Aussie's watch it.

I cannot imagine why you couldn't see it Margaret. Try this link to the main site http://www.uniquetreasures.phanfare.com and then click on the photo that shows the eagle. Should be the 3rd one on the right side of the page. If that doesn't work for you let me know and I'll ask the folks at Phanfare "what the hey".

Well, it kinda worked. It kept starting and stopping and would get stuck on one image for about 4 minutes. It may be a glitch in my system. However, I was able to view enough to see that you've done a fantastic job with Linth's images.

Who needs more fish-catching photos when you got the best ones right away? Excellent timing! I really liked the "lighting" shot with the spread of wings. Great job.

Here's a couple more from last Sunday.

Another adult Bald Eagle with wings spread ........

Another adult eagle photo sitting in a tree .......

Another flight pic .....

A nice adult peering down at me through a few leaves which blur the photo ......