Home»Conowingo Bald Eagles VII
Visitors 71
Modified 5-Dec-14
Created 3-Dec-14
17 photos
Juvenile Bald Eagles fishing on the Susquehanna River: Sunday November 30, 2014
From about 8am to 10am, there was significant activity at the dam. Four small generators were running, and large numbers of juvenile Shad were floating on the surface. The large number of juvenile Shad floaters was apparently too enticing to pass up by the many Bald Eagles, gulls, and Great Blue Herons fishing on the Susquehanna River. As many as 15 Bald Eagles were in the air at one time. The majority seemed to be juveniles. Judging from their brown and white markings, they appeared to range in age from 1 to 4 years old. There were also a few adults with pure white head and tail feathers.
It was a challenge to determine which bird to track through the viewfinder as we were all trying to anticipate which eagle might be the next one to swoop down and attempt to snatch a Shad from the water's surface.
Frequently, the small (4 - 6 inch) Shad were dropped by the eagles as their large talons could not always successfully grasp them. The fish that were not dropped were frequently gulped down by the eagles on-the-fly after which they circled back over the river to grab another "take out snack" from the river.
Click the first photo in the gallery to view larger images. A caption is provided beneath each photo.
Category:Animals
Subcategory:Birds
Subcategory Detail:
Keywords:Bald Eagle, Conowingo, Susquehanna, eagle, fish, fishing, raptor
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