A juvenile Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) tried to steal a fish from an Osprey (Pandion haliaetus) on Thursday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge and chased it across the sky. It was quite an aerial dogfight. In the end, I think that the osprey dropped the fish and both birds ended up “empty-handed.”
Ospreys migrate away from my area for the winter and I was delighted to see that they had returned. I spotted at least a half-dozen or more ospreys and they were both active and vocal. Ospreys have high-pitched, distinctive voices that the Cornell Lab of Ornithology described in these words, ” Their calls can be given as a slow succession of chirps during flight or as an alarm call—or strung together into a series that rises in intensity and then falls away, similar to the sound of a whistling kettle taken rapidly off a stove.” Here is a link to a Cornell Lab webpage where you can listen to recordings of various osprey calls.
These three photos give you a general sense of the chase. In the first shot, you can definitely see the “prize,” the fish that the osprey had caught. In the second shot, the eagle has closed the distance separating it from the osprey. In the third shot, the osprey is doing its best to maneuver away from the eagle, but the eagle was able to match the osprey turn by turn. All of this took place over the water and eventually the two birds flew out of range.
© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.
Mike Powell 
Always great to watch and you did get a few shots too. A win for sure.
It sure is fun to watch these aerial acrobatics. I’m always amazed that an Eagle would expend that much energy and risk injury over just catching his own meal. Nice set, Mike.
It is amazing how much energy they must have expended, because the eagle chased the osprey all over the place.
Yes! I have wondered if there isn’t an element of enjoyment for them in the chase.
Sometimes eagles will chase other eagles with fish and not just ospreys–maybe they do like the thrill of the the chase.
Nice series of images Mike! I have seen & photographed this quite often. Seems like Eagles like to do this quite often!
I have seen this scene multiple times, but have rarely been able to get shots of the action–generally it is too fast and too far away for me to capture. I think that the eagle’s propensity for trying to steal the food of other birds was one of the reasons why Ben Franklin did not want the eagle as our national bird–he preferred the wild turkey instead.
Wow Mike! Did not know about the Ben Franklin Wild Turkey as the National Bird! Thanks!
It might be an urban legend and he may have been joking about the turkey as the national bird, but Ben Franklin is reported to have said the following in a letter to his daughter Sarah in 1784, “For my own part I wish the bald eagle had not been chosen as the representative of our country. He is a bird of bad moral character. He does not get his living honestly. You may have seen him perched on some dead tree, where, too lazy to fish for himself, he watches the labour of the fishing hawk; and when that diligent bird has at length taken a fish, and is bearing it to his nest for the support of his mate and young ones, the bald eagle pursues him, and takes it from him. . . . the turkey is in comparison a much more respectable bird, and withal a true original native of America.”
Grate in-flight photos, Mike. Tell dear old Ben I wouldn’t want to be eating our national bird for lunch and on Thanksgiving.
Here is what Ben Franklin is reported to have said about the eagle in a letter to a daughter in 1784–he might have been seriously lobbying for the turkey. “For my own part I wish the bald eagle had not been chosen as the representative of our country. He is a bird of bad moral character. He does not get his living honestly. You may have seen him perched on some dead tree, where, too lazy to fish for himself, he watches the labour of the fishing hawk; and when that diligent bird has at length taken a fish, and is bearing it to his nest for the support of his mate and young ones, the bald eagle pursues him, and takes it from him. . . . the turkey is in comparison a much more respectable bird, and withal a true original native of America.”
Mike, your wonderful dramatic photos caused a poem to birth in my thoughts:
****
fishy business
eagle osprey aerial tackle
catch of the day slips
Spectacular shots, Mike! You would think the eagles are big enough and skilled enough to catch their own food rather than stealing it from other birds!
The eagles definitely are big enough and skilled enough to catch their own fish, but they seem to enjoy acting like bullies.
How did the Chase end??
I think that the osprey ended up dropping the fish, so that neither of them ended up with the fish. The eagle flew away and the osprey went back to try and catch another one.
Thanks for the finale! Nature is amazing.
Very interesting and cool action series!
Thanks. It was even more amazing to see it in person. 🙂
T-errific aerial show!