Would you be willing to chase an injured adult Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) with nothing more than a blanket in your hands? Yesterday, I was privileged to observe a very brave officer of the Fairfax County Animal Control Services capture an injured eagle at my local marshland park.
The eagle was perched on a brush pile in a flooded forest area of the marsh. From time to time it would hop to a new position, but did not seem able to fly away. Several parkgoers had alerted the park authorities of the situation and I came upon the situation shortly before the animal control officer arrived.
When the officer began to chase it, the eagle hopped away and then tried to swim away, stopping for a moment to look in my direction from behind a tree. Eventually, when an unidentified parkgoer helped to block a potential exit route for the eagle, the officer was able to capture the eagle.
As the officer was carrying the eagle, wrapped up in a blanket, to a small vehicle, I circled around on the path as fast as I could, hoping to get a closer look at the eagle. The officer was accommodating and briefly unwrapped the blanket and I got an amazing close-up look at this majestic bird. She was also willing to pose for me and I took a photo that I sent to her to help her remember her amazing actions.
I managed to get a final look at the eagle after it had been transferred to the animal control vehicle. The officer unwrapped the eagle so that the man who had assisted in the rescue could get a look at it. The eagle seemed to have settled down a bit and appeared to be resting comfortably. It was impossible to determine the cause and the extent of the eagle’s injuries, but the officer assured me that the county has excellent rehabilitation facilities for injured raptors. If I am able to get progress reports on the eagle’s recovery, I’ll be sure to keep you all informed.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Sensational photos Mike, even if it is sad they were taken in such circumstances. I especially like the composition in your first image, with the reflections, and the ‘wondering’ look of this majestic eagle in the second. How lucky were you! Chris
Thanks, Chris. It was amazing to find myself in this situation. I was on a boardwalk when I took the first two shots and was able to move to try to frame the images in between the trees and vegetation between me and the eagle. The good news about this story is that the eagle was found and was able to be sent off for rehabilitation. In many other situations, I fear, it would have died in the wild if it was unable to fly.
Thanks Mike for the beautiful pictures. May I refer your readers to 2 Raptor websites that I have been following for years.
https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/SOAR-Saving-Our-Avian-Resources/422229164528389
https://www.facebook.com/#!/pages/Decorah-Eagles/166402660081214
Thanks to the Fairfax County Annimal control and the citizens who took action to help with the rescue.
Judy
Now thats a big bird! Great shots and cuddos to the wildlife officer, hope the Eagle is doing well.. 🙂
What a magnificent bird! It is rare to get so close to a wild bird like that but I am sure the story will have a happy ending. I am sure the bird will be looked after and I look forward to hearing how it does if you do manage to keep tabs on its recovery. Amelia
Thanks. The initial report is that there was a dislocated joint in one wing, which is treatable, and the prognosis is pretty positive.
Great photos. Sorry for the conditions but it seems like he’s in good hands.
I’m not often in favor of interfering with natural happenings but I’ve seen enough dead turkeys in the woods to know that the bird’s chances were slim to none without some kind of intervention.
It was certainly a once in a lifetime event and you got some great shots of the eagle to remember it by.
A lot of problems that many wild animals face is NOT natural but rather human-caused, like shooting and poisoning. Fall is a prime time for eagles to be poisoned when scavenging on lead-infused carcased from hunters who still use toxic lead ammunition. I hope this poor eagle gets a second chance at freedom.
Unfortunately the extent of the eagle’s injuries were greater than initially believed and the doctors determined that the best course of action was “humane euthanasia.”
That was a neat experience and your photos are terrific! I’m glad it was just a shoulder injury and not lead poisoning or shooting that grounded the bird. It’s amazing to me how many eagles are shot each year, and not accidentally. Hopefully, the bird can be released back to the wild when it has recovered.
Thank goodness for wildlife rescue services! Great story and images Mike. I hope the eagle recovers well and perhaps can be released back to the wild.
Great images, Mike! I particularly liked the first one. This was one lucky bird to be found and rescued, I’m all for interfering when the alternative is suffering and a potentially long drawn-out death. Glad to hear the prognosis is good!
As others have already said the first two photos are fantastic. Circumstances allowed for a couple of unique “poses” and compositions and you did a very good job of maximizing those opportunities.
[…] « Rescue of an injured Bald Eagle […]
Great story and photos; excellent work. Shared:
http://facebook.com/PotomacRiverBaldEagles
Thanks for the share, Brad. I am very happy that the rescue was successful and the prognosis is good for this female Bald Eagle.
[…] (Additional information/photos available on local photography blog of Mike Powell: https://michaelqpowell.wordpress.com/2014/11/04/rescue-of-an-injured-bald-eagle/) […]
Great photos! Could we please have permission to use one or two of them (with credit) on NBCWashington.com? You can contact me via phone at 202-885-4257 or by email. Thank you very much.
I sent you a e-mail giving a green light to using the photos.
Hi Mike! These pics are fantastic! We’re posting a story about it on our website and social media, and would love to use a portion of your story and a few photos, with links back to your site. Could you let me know if that’s okay with you? My email is emily.stone@foxtv.com. Thanks!
I sent you an e-mail letting you know that I am ok with you posting a story on the rescue, using part of my story and some photos. Thanks.
Amazing – and a great story.
Hi Mike, these are great photos. We are wondering if we might be able to use a few photos and some of your story on our website: wtop.com. Thanks! You can email mpal@wtop.com
Hi Mike, We’d love to use a few of your images on wtop.com. Could you send us a quick note letting us know if we have permission? website@wtop.com or 202-895-5060 to reach the newsroom. Thanks so much! Amanda
I just sent an e-mail letting you know that I was ok with you using the images.
I spoke with the Wildlife Center of Virginia today and unfortunately this female eagle was euthanized due to the extent of her injuries. A sad and not uncommon ending for many eagles; still, great work with the rescue.
From the WCV:
A female adult bald eagle presented to WCV at 1 AM on 11/4/2014 after being found down with a suspected elbow luxation. The bird was found in Alexandria, MD in the afternoon of 11/3/2014 and transported to Kent, the rehabber, who was able to perform a cursory PE, and also administered fluids and offered food. The eagle was transported that night to WCV. On presentation the BAEA was BARF. Significant ocular lesions were observed OS and a R elbow luxation was palpated on PE and identified via radiographs. The luxation was determined to be chronic based on bruising, crepitus and radiographic interpretation and most likely the result of trauma. Prognosis for reduction and stabilization of elbow luxations after 48 hours is poor, and chronic arthritis is a common sequleae in these cases, which would prevent release. Based on these findings, humane euthanasia was determined to be the best course of treatment. R/O trauma.
[…] that the work of the Fairfax County Animal Control Services officer that I chronicled in an earlier posting were featured today in the on-line editions of local media, including the Washington Post, WJLA […]
What a beautiful bird and a sad end. My father bred birds and often had injured birds brought to him. Sadly, it is rare for a wild bird with a bad injury to survive and be re released.,
Thanks, Marie. It was the humane thing to do and the doctors at the Wildlife Center are very experienced in rehabilitation, so I trust their judgement. Still, I can’t help but feel a sense of sadness.
[…] you would like to see additional photos or learn more of the eagle rescue, check out my earlier posting. That posting has been my most popular one ever, thanks in part to the fact that several media […]
[…] websites of several Washington D.C. media outlets, resulting in a total of 3344 views of my posting Rescue of an injured Bald Eagle. A short time before that incident, I was really honored when I was featured in an Introductions […]
[…] that the work of the Fairfax County Animal Control Services officer that I chronicled in an earlier posting were featured today in the on-line editions of local media, including the Washington Post, WJLA […]
[…] a few news outlets in Washington D.C. ran a story with my photos and links to my blog. That posting has had 3396 view to day, far and away the most views for a single posting. In some ways I consider […]
[…] learn more about the rescue and see additional images in a posting from that period entitled “Rescue of an injured Bald Eagle.”) © Michael Q. Powell. All rights […]
[…] to original postings: Visible Song (8 March 2016); Fox on a frozen pond (31 January 2016); and Rescue of an injured Bald Eagle (4 November […]