Don't get a flat

[David Kirk]

or if you do ride it for awhile until you are out of this guys sight.

Dave

[Erik.Lazdins]

They see a lot farther than you may think.

Cool pic - Did you get that today?

[regularguy412]

Those are the guys usually circling around,, waiting for me to die.

Mike in AR

[jthurow]

Thanks for the pic, Dave! When I lived in Rock Island, IL, one of my favorite winter time spins was to ride the river path down to the marina and count the eagles that would congregate around the open water to feed. There are a couple of damns in the area so it's a mecca for them. I lost count once after 40...

jimi

[Sandy]

My identical twin brother is a bird of prey expert (the smart one in the family). He said that he will send me a great photo of a bald eagle when he is able to use his computer. He is presently in Maine and having trouble with the service of his internet supplier. Being the not so smart twin, I will email the picture to you, and if you like you can post it on the forum, since I have no clue as how to post pictures here.


Bald, but not an eagle,

Sandy

[mjb266]

given your location I was hoping for something more like this...

[Sandy]

Great picture! Is that look on the bear's face because the eagle is making his stomach upset?? :rolleyes:


Sandy

[mjb266]

or this...

[72gmc]

Relatives in St. Ignatius have grizzlies in their yard on occasion. For some reason my wife likes to bring that up when I pine for Montana.

[RIHans]

Here in the east we see, not enough eagles...Thanks. Here, in RI, I count myself lucky to see a bird of prey. Good Eye!...HH

[djg]

or if you do ride it for awhile until you are out of this guys sight.

Dave

Mmmmm...tastes like chicken.

[Elefantino]

Beautiful creatures; not the "dandified chicken" that TR called them.

We have nests in our neighborhood and we are fortunate every once in a while to see hatchlings. Their cry is unmistakable.

We don't have big bears, though. Big hairy people, but not bears. Only little black ones.

[catulle]

Don't...

[zeroking17]

Raptors are magnificent animals. That's a great photo, Dave.

Here's a photo of a Cooper's Hawk in our yard a few weeks ago.

It swooped down from its perch, plucked a Mourning Dove out of the air (the dove had been feeding at a feeder), wringed the life out of the dove by crushing it with its talons, and then spent the next hour devouring it bite by bite.

After the hawk left, all that was left of the dove were a pile of feathers and the severed head.

p.s. The photo was taken through a window. The hawk was eyeing me.

[David Kirk]

It seems to be the time of year when the raptors return. There is a farm house close to our home that always has eagle in the trees. Every spring they hang out there. I went for a ride and saw them yesterday and had to go back with the camera to take a few photos.

I'm also seeing many kestrels this year. They watch you from the power lines as you roll under. You can see the intelligence and awareness in their eyes.

Dave

[Tom]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_VlVckrUgY

[zeroking17]

It seems to be the time of year when the raptors return. There is a farm house close to our home that always has eagle in the trees. Every spring they hang out there. I went for a ride and saw them yesterday and had to go back with the camera to take a few photos.

I'm also seeing many kestrels this year. They watch you from the power lines as you roll under. You can see the intelligence and awareness in their eyes.

Dave

Kestrels are kewl. Many people don't recognize them as raptors because they're relatively small. I love watching them as they use headwinds to hover over a field until they spot a prey and then dive down to grab it.

Your comment about "intelligence and awareness in their eyes" is true and beautiful. We can only imagine how they see the world.

[Elefantino]

.

[flydhest]

Luckily, the bald eagle has made a great recovery. Apparently, there is even a nesting pair in Washinton, DC, but the Park Service won't disclose where--for good reason I should say.

Thanks for the pic, Dave.

[FATBOY]

A favorite ever ride was a Christmas morning ride a few years back in Missoula. I stopped on a bridge over the Clarks Fork River and watched as a young bald eagle dive bombed a group of ducks that were floating along on the current. He seemed to be practicing his hunting technique, bombing them time and time again, letting them regroup in between each scare before diving at them again. A group gathered at that bridge and just watched in awe for a good ten minutes. Next to running into bear on the trails it is my most indelible Montana moment.

[JohnS]

My favorite is the Redtailed Hawk. We have them everywhere around here.

[Sandy]

A favorite ever ride was a Christmas morning ride a few years back in Missoula. I stopped on a bridge over the Clarks Fork River and watched as a young bald eagle dive bombed a group of ducks that were floating along on the current. He seemed to be practicing his hunting technique, bombing them time and time again, letting them regroup in between each scare before diving at them again. A group gathered at that bridge and just watched in awe for a good ten minutes. Next to running into bear on the trails it is my most indelible Montana moment.

My brother (bird of prey expert) said that he just saw a film clip of an eagle hunting a duck, and it was interesting to watch the eagle's technique as it hunted, not allowing the duck to escape, since the eagle wouldn't be able to catch the duck if it flew away, as it is not fast enough. That would be interesting to watch, but I would not want to watch the actual kill. I don't like to see animals attacked or killed by other animals, especially by human animals. I OFTEN wonder about why humans enjoy hunting and killing animals for fun. I just don't understand what happiness/satsfaction one can obtain from that. It would make me very sad and horrible to do that. I DO respect the rights of hunters. I just don't get the motivation.


Quack Quack

[Too Tall]

given your location I was hoping for something more like this...

Are you going to tell him his shorts are kinda see thru?

IN washington DC yrs. ago the Park Service released red tail hawks to help control the pigeon population. Pigeons were not impressed however it makes for some really spectacular scenes. If you ever see what happens in mid air when the hawk catches a pigeon at high speed...it's kinda like the pigeon explodes. ewww.

[11.4]

Texas has plenty of raptors and they're pretty smart, too. Texas used to run their state road championships in early July and it was a mandatory 100 miles in the heat and hills. The State Rep at the time was sympathetic to the riders competing but didn't have any leeway with the USCF to modify the date or the distance (now USA Cycling -- so what's changed?). He raced a few times and to show his support entered the state road championships. Well, about 70 miles into it, he was off the back. At about 90 miles, the pack had finished and I went back looking for him. There, up in the air, was this circling pack of Texas turkey vultures. A couple hills later, and he was plugging along, heading for the line. He hadn't bothered to look up, but the vultures were circling over him. Too bad I hadn't taken a photo. Sometimes I think it's a fair metaphor of the racing life. Sometimes I think it's a fair metaphor for USA Cycling. Either way, we had a good laugh while he had three quick cold beers and a box of popsicles. One of the best state reps I ever met.

[jthurow]

...but Dirt and I saw 3 turkeys cross the road in front of us yesterday. Unfortunately... no pics were taken as we were both gasping for air from gettin' our arses killed by the hills 'round here.

jimi

[bigbill]

I just bought a house on a 1.6 acre lot in Poulsbo, Washington. There are two eagle nests on the back edge of the property near the Hood Canal. The family we bought the house from warned us about having outdoor cats. During the day the eagles will snatch them and at night the coyotes/bobcats/mountain lions/ginormous raccoons will get them. We will have bears too, but they don't show much interest in housecats. I never liked the cats, I am torn on what to do. Maybe it will be quick.

[RIHans]

I just bought a house on a 1.6 acre lot in Poulsbo, Washington. There are two eagle nests on the back edge of the property near the Hood Canal. The family we bought the house from warned us about having outdoor cats. During the day the eagles will snatch them and at night the coyotes/bobcats/mountain lions/ginormous raccoons will get them. We will have bears too, but they don't show much interest in housecats. I never liked the cats, I am torn on what to do. Maybe it will be quick.
Serve 'um up!

[shinomaster]

Dave...have you been reading the Far Side?