Birds of Prey

EAGLES Though many of us have seen pictures of a huge eagle's nest high in the branches of a tree or in the crag of a cliff, few of us have gotten a glimpse inside. When a mother eagle builds her nest she starts with thorns, broken branches, sharp rocks, and a number of other items that seem entirely unsuitable for the project. But then she lines the nest with a thick padding of wool, feathers, and fur from animals she has killed, making it soft and comfortable for the eggs. By the time the growing birds reach flying age, the comfort of the nest and the luxury of free meals make them quite reluctant to leave. That's when the mother eagle begins "stirring up the nest." With her strong talons she begins pulling up the thick carpet of fur and feathers, bringing the sharp rocks and branches to the surface. As more of the bedding gets plucked up, the nest becomes more uncomfortable for the young eagles. Eventually, this and other urgings prompt the growing eagles to leave their once-comfortable abode and move on to mor mature behavior. Today in the Word, June 11, 1989

HERITAGE While walking through the forest one day, a man found a young eagle which had fallen out of its nest. He took it home and put it in his barnyard where it soon learned to eat and behave like the chickens. One day a naturalist passed by the farm and asked why it was that the king of all birds should be confined to live in the barnyard with the chickens. The farmer replied that since he had given it chicken feed and trained it to be a chicken, it had never learned to fly. Since it now behaved as the chickens, it was no longer an eagle. "Still it has the heart of an eagle," replied the naturalist, "and can surely be taught to fly." He lifted the eagle toward the sky and said, "You belong to the sky and not to the earth. Stretch forth your wings and fly." The eagle, however, was confused. He did not know who he was, and seeing the chickens eating their food, he jumped down to be with them again. The naturalist took the bird to the roof of the house and urged him again, saying, "You are an eagle. Stretch forth your wings and fly." But the eagle was afraid of his unknown self and world and jumped down once more for the chicken food. Finally the naturalist took the eagle out of the barnyard to a high mountain. There he held the king of the birds high above him and encouraged him again, saying, "You are an eagle. You belong to the sky. Stretch forth your wings and fly." The eagle looked around, back towards the barnyard and up to the sky. Then the naturalist lifted him straight towards the sun and it happened that the eagle began to tremble. Slowly he stretched his wings, and with a triumphant cry, soared away into the heavens. It may be that the eagle still remembers the chickens with nostalgia. It may even be that he occasionally revisits the barnyard. But as far as anyone knows, he has never returned to lead the life of a chicken. from Theology News and Notes, October, 1976, quoted in Multnomah Message, Spring, 1993, Page 1

This anecdote concerns red tail hawks. A few years ago the Pittsburgh Zoo had two of it red tail hawks stolen. The birds were later found. The man who had stolen them was keeping them in a pen in his back yard with a rabbit. The hawks and been born in the zoo and had lived there all their lives; so they didn't know anything about hunting. As far as they were concerned their meals were chunks of meat delivered to them every day. So there they were, the hawks on one side of the cage, not sure what that thing wedged in the corner trembling in abject terror was. It was the rabbit. The story has a happy ending the rabbit was unharmed, and the red tail hawks went back home to the zoo.

How incredibly nightmarish. Imagine one of us being caged with two leopards or tigers...

and the tigers not knowing what to do! that's good. very true about captive bred birds though but funny none-the-less. (i love red tails btw)

...two, white Las Vegas Tigers, then....

much better!

I almost sure I saw a golden eagle near Gleneagles golf course in Scotland. It came and perched in a tree by the road. I was so excited we swerved!

Oooh! How extraordinary! Eagles are really cool...NO! they are better than cool, but I don't know the word... I am still looking for my first Bald Eagle even though I have stared past one IRL and did not know it. I have a panoramic photo I took to prove it. It is sitting on a dead limb very spectacularly, but we must have been looking elsewhere! How disappointing!

That's why we nearly swerved!!! I was SO excited. We had an Osprey (Fish hawk) visiting regularly in a creek in the Gambia, and i had a Goshawk visit my birdbath in the village. Here (in HW) we get buzzed by red Kites all the time. It's still thrilling to see them.

I gotta new 'intelligent' search tool which sits on my desktop. It just turned up this: http://www.dfg.ca.gov/watchable/prey.html#1 have a look!

great info, thanks maggie! you always find stuff for birdwatching but not too much is out there on watching those magnificent raptors!

Here's another one it turned up! It has some nice pictures. http://www.raptorsoftherockies.org/birds.html

excellent!

Thought you'd like it *grin*

Sounds like a guy movie mixed with a Jeanette MacDonald one..."Raptors of the Rockies" Great site!

http://news6.thdo.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/uk/newsid%5F860000/860700.stm Solar powered Ospreys! Solar-powered satellite tracking devices are being fitted to ospreys as part of a project to re-establish the birds of prey in England, 150 years after they disappeared. For the past five years, a small number of osprey chicks have been brought down from Scotland to Rutland Water in the Midlands and released. Last year, electronic transmitters were attached to the fish-eating birds so that scientists could keep track of their movements. But because the devices were battery powered, the birds could only be monitored for a single season. So when this year's chicks are released on Tuesday morning, they will be carrying more sophisticated transmitters powered by sunlight. This should make it possible to track each individual osprey for up to three or four years, giving a much more complete picture of the lifestyle of these majestic creatures. Last year's tracking confirmed that once they leave Rutland Water in late August or September, the ospreys fly as far afield as Mali in West Africa to spend the winter months. The devices send their signals back via satellite, and the ospreys' progress can be monitored by scientists - and the public - via the internet. One disappointment for the project is that this was the first year when the original chicks would have been old enough to breed - but so far, the English air does not seem to have got them in the mood.

Eagle survives virus scare http://www.timesunion.com/AspStories/substory.asp?storyKey=41891&BCCode=WNILE&SubCategory=WN GUILDERLAND -- A bald eagle has narrowly escaped death from what is most likely West Nile virus, the mosquito-borne illness that has claimed the lives of hundreds of birds throughout the state this year, including 49 species that are at risk of becoming endangered. The bald eagle -- which is listed as a threatened species likely to become endangered -- is expected to be released back into the wild Thursday. Meanwhile, on Tuesday, the state total of dead birds climbed to 704, including a crow and great blue heron in Albany County, where two more bats also tested positive for the virus. While blood tests have yet to confirm whether the eagle contracted West Nile virus or was sickened by pesticide or rat poison -- two other common culprits in the deaths of birds of prey -- veterinarians who nursed the raptor back to health suspect West Nile virus. Birds are the virus's hosts, meaning that they multiply the virus to a level where it can be passed onto a mosquito, which then transmits it to a human through a blood-drawing bite. The virus -- which has spread throughout the state -- has developed into West Nile encephalitis in 11 New York City residents. But while some birds -- such as crows and blue jays -- die from the virus, others are simply carriers, with few symptoms. "We don't know specifically with the bald eagle how vulnerable they are to (West Nile virus) because this would be the first one we've seen,'' said Ed Becker, a veterinarian at the Animal Hospital in Guilderland, where all of New York's injured endangered species are taken for rehabilitation. "We know that with other birds that if you treat them for encephalitis, half of them will get better,'' he added. "If we can keep them alive long enough for their own immune system to kick in they have a fighting chance.'' The adult male bald eagle, which weighs seven pounds and has a 4 1/2-foot wing span, was dropped off at the animal hospital last Wednesday being discovered in a back yard on Elizabeth Court. It was barely able to stand and was suffering from seizures. A band on its ankle indicated it had flown here from Delaware. "We didn't expect him to make it through the first night, or the second,'' said Becker. After days of being fed intravenous fluids and medication for the life-threatening inflammation of the brain that can develop after being bitten by a West Nile-infected mosquito, the eagle has been eating fish on its own since Sunday. On Tuesday, it was released into a flight cage, a 24-by-24-by-18-foot outdoor cubicle where it will redevelop the muscle tone it lost by being caged for more than a week. It flexed its wings, bobbed its head and flew around the enclosure looking for a way out -- all good signs.

maggie, you have been doing some serious research for us here. thanks so much!

(sorry it won't last ...I'm off in less than four weeks ...you'll need to check Cultures and Travel conferences for postings from Africa!!!! - via Marcia. I'll be on email though I won't have full internet access)