More Serious Marina Park Eagle Action

[Bill Anderson]

Sunday (2/16) the eagle action was hot and heavy at Marina Park despite high winds and lousy light. One eagle was perched on the piling eating something when a second eagle swooped in and chased it off the piling.

It flew south with its prey,


then returned to the piling while a third eagle, which I presume to be its mate, flew in to dispatch the would-be thief.


Most of the best action shots were out of focus, such as this one where all three eagles are visible.


The first eagle reclaimed the piling while the other two were flying overhead.

 

[Bill Anderson]

Overhead dueling.




Eventually one eagle headed east while the other flew south around Pt. Edwards, leaving the first eagle alone to eat in peace.


I could tell the prey was a bird as the feathers flew when the eagle bit into the carcass.

 

[Bill Anderson]

The wind and the waves picked up.


So much so that the eagle flew to the low trees across the railroad tracks to finish eating.




The evil minions of the Dark Lord arrived to harass the eagle.


After finishing off the carcass, the eagle cleaned it beak and flew south around Pt. Edwards.


Although the eagles were plentiful and photogenic, shooting conditions were miserable with high winds, poor light, and a little rain.

 

[Terry O]

Wow, Bill - you braved quite a day for these! Great shots, particularly considering the lighting and weather!

 

[Bill Anderson]

I don't think it was bravery quite so much as boredom.

 

[Bill Anderson]

Terry, Janine, Daren, and I spent Thursday (2/20) afternoon at Marina Park photographing wildlife action. Four eagles have been making regular appearances in the area: the Pt. Edwards pair, one adult, and a juvie.

One of the Pt. Edwards adults was eating a fish on the family perch when a second eagle toting a fish flew by with the other Pt. Edwards eagle in hot pursuit.

 

[Bill Anderson]

The two made several passes past the perch while the first eagle continued to eat.

 

[Bill Anderson]

I assumed the eagle doing the chasing was the mate of the one on the perch as the perched eagle did not react when it flew by.

 

[Terry O]

Love it, Bill. Great action!

 

[Bill Anderson]

We relocated to the picnic tables at the end of the parking lot for one last sequence of one of the pair returning to the perch with another fish.

 

[Bill Anderson]

Here is more eagle action from earlier on 2/20/14. I suspect there is an unattached adult roaming the air space between the Pt. Edwards and Pt. Wells pairs' territories that is seeking a mate.









Add juvies to the mix and we are getting quite a few resident eagles. I wonder how many our area can sustain.

 

[Bill Anderson]

The Pt. Edwards eagle action picked up Tuesday (2/25) afternoon, which was sunny for a change.

The two flew into a tree above the railroad tracks as a train rolled by. I moved in for closer photos after the train passed.


One eagle left and flew circles over the condos. I believe it was the male due its longer, narrower wings.


The other remained in the tree to eat something.


The second eagle left the tree and flew over the tracks close to me. I believe it was the female due to its shorter, wider wings.


I think she had caught a bird.

 

[Bill Anderson]

I had a hunch that the female might have returned to the nest to finish off the meal in peace and quiet, so I drove up for a look.

She had definitely been eating, as her beak was quite bloody.


It turned out to be anything but peaceful and quiet as a juvie flew past the nest and perched on an adjacent tree to the south.

 

[Bill Anderson]

The female did not like the presence of the juvie and screeched most of the time it was there.


Her screeches attracted the male, who flew in and landed in the nest. The juvie is barely visible in the right corner of this photo.




The male joined the sreechfest.


He flew out of the nest and landed in the sentry tree to the north of the nest tree.

 

[Bill Anderson]

The juvie left its perch. Compare the amount of white on this juvie's head with the juvie in the photos taken on 2/20. This may be the 2011 Pt. Edwards eaglet, while the one in the photo of 2/20 may be one of the 2013 eaglets.


It flew past the male in the sentry tree.




One adult (I'm not sure which) gave chase.

 

[Bill Anderson]

The juvie flew out of sight and both adults wound up together.







The juvie returned for a second lap which set off the adults once again.




At this point I left the eagles to their (family?) squabble.

 

[DeddoArts]

Fantastic action shots! The one with the blood on the tail might be my favorite... I just love watching eagles in action.