Heavy Weight Bout; Eagle vs Heron

[NorthernFocus]

But it was really no contest. All the heron wanted was a way out.

A couple of weeks ago I put up a post about my visit to a dam and the birds there. Well yesterday I made the six hour round trip again. This time the weather was much better as was cooperation from the birds. I observed/documented this eagle attacking a great blue heron in order to steal its fish. I was pretty far off and the images are substantially cropped (8-10MP vs 20MP original). But there was good light and they are sharp so they cropped well. Unfortunately at that range DOF didn't do much to soften the BG which is really messy. But as I said, they are documentary not fine art

1) This mature bald eagle was sitting in a tree across the river from where I was set up. I was keeping an eye on it while also watching/shooting other activity. It launched from its tree top and by the time I found it in the viewfinder and locked focus it had made a pass at a great blue heron. Bald eagles are notorious for stealing from other birds so I figured it was not after the heron itself but rather the heron's catch.



2) I could see it had no fish so I kept tracking its movement figuring it would circle back.



3) In this shot you can see the heron has jumped into the water to retrieve the fish which it presumably dropped. The heron is up under the trees/brush where it is difficult for the eagle to get at it. On the other hand it can't escape. The fish is visible but it is hard to tell whether it is impaled on the top half of the heron's beak or the heron had just dropped it.



4) The heron's head is drawn back and it is trying to retreat but is cornered.



5) This shot is funny. The eagle is looking straight at the camera as if aware that its assault is being recorded. You can see the heron shrieking in the BG up under the brush.



6) The eagle circles around and lands in a tree about 30-40ft(12m) directly above the heron.



7) Apparently he's thinking up another strategy. The light BG is the face of the dam.



8) I missed the eagle diving again but this time it came away with the fish. I did get a shot of it making its getaway. I've got another frame or two in which the fish is more visible but this is the best one of the bird.

[DanK]

An amazing sequence. Bravo!

I have seen a bald eagle attack an Osprey to steal a fish (once), but I have never seen one go after anything else.

[Suzan J]

Great drama! I didn't know that eagles were such thieves. You would think with all their amazing gifts as hunters, they would be content to catch their own fish.

[AlwaysOnAuto]

Great series!
Thanks for sharing it with us.

[Shadowman]

Nice series.

[madcrow]

Your words for the story and your images for drama. Brilliantly done on both accounts . A real joy to look at, thanks for sharing.

[ragman]

What a fabulous series. My favorite is #1. How you kept focus is amazing.

[NorthernFocus]

Glad you folks enjoyed the post. Thanks for the comments.

...I didn't know that eagles were such thieves. You would think with all their amazing gifts as hunters, they would be content to catch their own fish.

They're also well equipped to take fish from others. Including other eagles. They fight viciously with one another.

But they aren't alone in that behavior. The reason I went to that location is that the population density of birds leads to a lot of unique intra and inter species behavior, mostly conflict over food. Eagles are top dogs, great blue herons next, then egrets, and on down the food chain. The egrets are actually very aggressive. Facinating to watch all the drama play out. I'll post more as I get time to cull/process files.

[NorthernFocus]

...How you kept focus is amazing.

With long glass a tripod and gimbal head is hard to beat.

[Cantab]

Dan, a great series of shots! Could you tell how the heron was doing after the incident? Possibly somewhat tramatized. Your description of the fighting over food reminded me of seagulls as well.

[Wavelength]

WOW; i am mesmerized!!! really a stunning series.... in #5, is that another fish jumping out of water or the one already caught being tossed?

[Rita]

What a great series. I have seen eagles catch and fly away with ducks but I have never seen the activities in this series.

[NorthernFocus]

Thanks for the comments, folks.

...Could you tell how the heron was doing after the incident? Possibly somewhat tramatized. Your description of the fighting over food reminded me of seagulls as well.

No I didn't notice what the heron did afterward. There were several of them on that bank of the river and I lost track. There was a lot of activity to keep up with.

There were quite a few gulls fishing the area as well. If they catch anything to large to be immediately consumed they immediately get pursued by other gulls and larger birds. There was one egret that was particularly aggressive. It sat in the top of a tree and dove down to attack any smaller or like sized bird that caught a fish. Maybe Jonathan Livingston Egret ?

.... in #5, is that another fish jumping out of water or the one already caught being tossed?

If you are referring to the white object that is half a meter or so above the splashes that is a feather from one of the birds.

[Mike Buckley]

Never seen anything like it in person or in photos!

[bje07]

great series.

[JBW]

Fantastic.

[Dave A]

What a great series.

Dave

[bnnrcn]

Super set and story Dan

[NorthernFocus]

Glad you folks enjoyed the post. Thanks for commenting.

[Manfred M]

Great series and great explanation.

I enjoyed the read that went along with the excellent images!