Of all the eagle images I’ve acquired over the last handful of years, this one would have to have the most significance, at least in terms of generating a pleasant, unforgettable memory.
It was in late December, which is usually when we start seeing the numbers of eagles climb in the area. This particular day was brutally cold, with a constant 25 mph wind coming out of the North. Eagles can handle the cold alright but even they will look for optimum spots to perch if the conditions warrant it. They like exposure to the sun, and they want to stay out of the cold winds, so a large number of birds hunkered in on the northern, or Iowa side of the river near Muscatine.
What was most interesting though was the popularity of one particular perch. It’s the one you see in the image above. There was nothing that seemed special about this limb…it was part of a broken and beaten down tree…but for most of the one first afternoon, and into the second morning, there was an eagle on it almost constantly, and it was not uncommon to see them replace one another on it with some frequency.
That’s what’s happening in the photograph. I had found the smaller bird perched there, quite content for a time. Then it appeared to get restless and agitated. And in a second, I found out why. This much bigger bird was coming in hard and fast, and with a purpose, and it got no resistance from the first occupant. After landing the larger bird postured in defiance and let out a couple of strong vocalizations. It had a very dominating presence!
This short session with the eagles was really amazing to watch. I’ve never seen this behavior, or a bird on this particular perch since that day. But at least I got a few shots to remember the moment. And one final note, this image was shot with a Sony A6000 mirrorless camera attached to a Canon 500mm F4.5 FD lens. An odd combination of sorts, but the camera shot fast at 11 frames per second, and the shot started with a static bird on perch, so the manual focus lens worked out just great.