Monday, September 22, 2008

Bald Eagles on the St. George River



I witnessed an amazing drama while out kayaking this weekend.
We have had quite a few Bald eagle sightings lately and I went out with my little Canon A640 in hopes of capturing one atop a Spruce. I camped out in my favorite little cove and while I was waiting, I saw some commotion on the water. After slipping my kayak a little closer, I noticed what I thought to be a Bald eagle in distress in the middle of the Cove. He was remarkably using one of his wings as an oar ! This was quite a sight to see. One enormous, powerful wing paddling and struggling to get to shore.

When he got to shore it immediately became clear why he was struggling so hard. He had nabbed a Cormorant!

He took flight with the cormorant and landed on a small rock on the opposite side of the Cove. I was able to kayak over closer to the scene and captured some incredible photos with my little camera.
A young eagle flew in and tried to take the c
ormorant. After a brief but noisy scuffle, the adult eagle sat on a nearby rock and let the young eagle feed. That is where I got most of my photos.

I left to paddle on for a bit but swung back around long enough to find that the adult had taken over and got some of these last shots.

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4 comments:

Nancy Van Blaricom said...

I too have witnessed the struggle of an eagle ... fighting to save his catch. Beautiful to watch nature in action.

Your photography is awesome.

Victoria Pittman said...

Thanks Nancy..I'll bet you see a lot up there in NW.

It truly was an amazing site.
In research, I learned that sometimes they almost drown trying to bring a larger than usual catch ashore...
So he was really struggling with that Cormorant but not willing to let the prey go.

Unknown said...

Oh Vicky these photos and story are awesome. Take my breath away girl. When we witness nature at it's finest it sends an energy through me like no other.

Darn I need to get out on our lagoons in a kayak someday.

We will meet someday!

Anonymous said...

Great stuff Vicky! Awesome pictures!! That had to be a ton of fun for sure.

Hey!!!....you and PJP NEED to get here to Western NC for the leaf changing this year. Plus, I can't believe you guys have not toured the incredible Biltmore House, which is here too!

I hope "y'all" visit me here REALLY soon so you can experience this truly unique city and surrounding area! You will find yourself coming back more than once....

R