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Posts Tagged ‘Bald Eagle’

Baby bald eagles

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , on April 15, 2018| 9 Comments »

Babies are always exciting and it looks like there are at least two eaglets in one of the Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) nests that I have been watching for quite a few weeks. When I arrived at the barrier that blocks one of the trails on Friday morning at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, I noticed that the adult eagle was no longer sitting in the center of the nest—she was sitting in a much more upright position than previously and was sitting to one side of the nest. I began watching the nest through my telephoto zoom lens and periodically I was see the top of a little head pop briefly into view. I kept watching and eventually was able to get a shot that shows two babies.

I decided to crop the shot in two ways. The first one is a pretty severe crop, but it lets folks get a good look at all three eagles. The second crop is much looser and gives a better sense of the context of the shot by showing more of the tree and of the nest.

Bald Eagle babies

Bald Eagle babies

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Spread eagle

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , , on April 9, 2018| 11 Comments »

Ospreys (Pandion haliaetus) are really cool and I have been photographing them quite a lot recently.  However, they can’t quite match the majesty of Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), like this one that soared almost directly over me on Friday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

I never cease to be thrilled by the mere glimpse of a Bald Eagle and it is always a joy to capture an image of one in flight.

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Tenderness of an eagle

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , , , on April 4, 2018| 7 Comments »

Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) appear really fierce with their intense eyes and powerful talons and beaks, but they also have their tender moments, as you can see in this image that I captured on Monday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. Officials have blocked off an area of the wildlife refuge for the security and privacy of the nesting eagles, but I was able to get this shot by shooting over the barrier with a long telephoto zoom lens and by cropping the image.

The female eagle, which I believe is the larger one on the right, seems to be sitting much higher than she was several weeks ago, making me wonder if one or more egg might have already hatched. A few moments before I captured this image, she was repeatedly lowering her head down into the nest and then raising it. Perhaps she was just eating, but I like to imagine that she was feeding an eaglet.

From what I have read, eagles mate for life and actually are quite affectionate with each other. Additionally, they share the responsibilities for sitting on the eggs and for raising the young. I am somewhat more familiar with some duck species, where the female is left with responsibility for caring for the ducklings, and it really causes me to admire the devotion and commitment of the eagles to each other.

So what about you and the ones that you love? Do you get weary? Maybe we too should follow the words of the classic Otis Redding song and “Try a Little Tenderness.”

Bald Eagles

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Two extremes

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, Portraits, spring, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on March 23, 2018| 13 Comments »

Are you attracted more by something that is powerful and exciting or by something that is familiar and comfortable? When it comes to photography, it seems like I constantly face this dilemma. Should I be chasing after the large predators of the air, travelling, as some birders do, hundreds of miles in the hopes of photographing a rare species like a snowy owl? Should I be content to spend my time scanning the branches and bushes for familiar birds that some dismissively call “backyard birds?”

Fortunately, this is not an either-or proposition—it is what academics would call a “false dichotomy.” I don’t have to choose only one type of subject on which to focus my attention and my camera. The reality is that I want to photograph them all and find equal enjoyment in photographing a modest White-throated Sparrow (Zonotrichia albicollis) and a majestic Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus). I photographed both of these birds this past week at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge and for me they represent the two extremes that I mentioned earlier.

One image is a carefully composed portrait of a small bird at rest and the other is an action shot of a powerful predator in the air taken on the fly, relying on reactions. Is one “better” than the other? Maybe it is better to ask if you find one more appealing, one that speaks to you more.

It is a bit of a cliché to state that beauty is in the eye of the beholder—beauty is often subjective, but sometimes people talk of universal beauty. How can that be? Personally, when I think about beauty, I realize that it is inherently contradictory, that it is an elusive mystery that we can never fully understand, but that is worth pursuing.

Beauty can be found in many places and in many ways. As you prepare for the weekend, I hope that you too will find time to discover the beauty that surrounds you, in the familiar or the exotic or somewhere in between those two extremes.

White-throated Sparrow

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Touched by the sun

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , on March 21, 2018| 7 Comments »

Eagles in flight are always a challenge for me to photograph, so I was really happy when I managed to capture this image of a bald eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) that flew by me on Monday morning at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge as rays of sunlight illuminated different parts of its body.

Quite often when I spot eagles in flight, they are really high up in the sky and it is difficult to capture details of the majestic birds. As you can probably tell from the angle of view in this shot, this eagle was flying at a relatively low angle when I took this shot. Additionally, the eagle was pretty close—I cropped some from the top of the original image, but not much at all from side to side. In fact, one of the biggest problems I had was keeping the eagle within the frame. On several other images I took, I cut off portions of the wings or of the body.

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Glaring eagle

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on March 19, 2018| 8 Comments »

Last Friday morning at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, I spotted a Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) in a distant tree further down the trail. I decided to try to sneak closer to the eagle, hoping it would not see me through the tangle of branches separating us.

When I got close enough for a mostly unobstructed shot, I focused on the eagle and realized it was glaring down right at me with what looked to be disapproval. A few seconds later the eagle took off and disappeared from sight.

Sneaking up on an eagle? I am not sure that it can be done—the eagle’s superior sight and reaction time seem to win out every single time.

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle

 © Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Preparing for takeoff

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, spring, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on March 16, 2018| 4 Comments »

On a recent early morning trip to Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, I spotted a Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) perched on a broken-off branch below what appears to be an active eagle nest. Perhaps this was the male keeping watch or possibly the female taking a break. The nest is so high up and deep that it is difficult to determine if another eagle was sitting on the nest.

Despite my best efforts at stealth, the eagle detected my presence as I tried to move further down the trail to get a better angle, but I was able to get these shots as the eagle was preparing to take off. In the middle shot, I did a less severe crop than on the other two in order to give you an idea of how closely the eagle was perched to the nest—the sticks in the upper portion of the image are the bottom of the nest.

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Coming at me

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , , , , , , on March 8, 2018| 2 Comments »

When this immature Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) fixed its eyes on me on Monday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge and flew straight toward me, I couldn’t help but feel a little concerned. As it turned out, the young eagle was simply soaring and veered away—and my heartbeat eventually returned to a normal rate.

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Dirty-headed eagle

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , on March 5, 2018| 3 Comments »

At first I thought this Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) that I spotted today at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge had a really dirty head, but I’m beginning to think that maybe it’s simply the feather pattern of an almost-mature eagle whose head will eventually be all white.

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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Eagles in the mist

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , , , , , , , on March 2, 2018| 8 Comments »

Do you take photos only when the weather conditions are optimal? If I followed that rule, I’d be staying at home most of the time. This winter in particular, it seems like I am at work on all of the days with good weather. So often I will choose to go out with my camera when I am free and not when the weather is good.

One particular morning last week it was really foggy and visibility was extremely limited. The subjects that I could see were hazy and indistinct, utterly lacking in contrast. It’s hard to know how what camera setting to use in situations like those.

I was at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, my favorite spot this winter for wildlife photography, and as usual I managed to spot some Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus). It is always a challenge to photograph the eagles, because they tend to perch a good distance away from the trails that I follow and they are often quite skittish.

In this case, the difficulties were magnified, because of the heavy fog/mist. I ended up processing the images that I captured in a number of different ways, attempting at times to enhance the contrast or eliminate some of the fog, with varying degrees of success.

Here are a few of my favorite shots of the eagles in the mist.

Bald Eagles

Bald Eagles

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Monochromatic young eagle

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , , , , , , , on March 1, 2018| 7 Comments »

The skies were heavily overcast on Monday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, so colors didn’t “pop” at all. However, I really like the almost monochromatic feel of this image I captured of a young Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), with just the slightest bit of yellow showing around its talons.

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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In the shadow of the trees

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , , , , , on February 19, 2018| 5 Comments »

This eagle’s nest is nestled back in the trees at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, somewhat obstructed though still visible from the trail. When I first sighted the nest this past Saturday morning, it looked like it was empty.  I kept my eyes glued to the nest as I slowly walked past it and suddenly I spotted a Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) sitting on the nest, partially hidden in the shadow of the trees. This is the second nest at the refuge that I have spotted so far this winter that appears to be in use, though I suspect that there may be more. When leaves return to the trees, I fear that the nest will be completely hidden from view, which will give the eagles a little more privacy from paparazzi like me.

bald eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Bald eagle snags a fish

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , , , , , , , on February 14, 2018| 8 Comments »

The weather was not very cooperative this past Monday, but my persistence was rewarded when I was able to observe a Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) pulling a fish out of the waters off of Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge in Northern Virginia. On multiple occasions I have seen an eagle with a fish in its talons, but this was the first time that I actually got the see the eagle catch the fish.

The only downside was that I was quite a distance away and the light was limited when I captured the shots. Like most wildlife photographers, though, I feel inspired by the images that I do capture to go out again and again, often to the same places, with the hope and expectation that I will have more opportunities to make better images. Unlike Olympic athletes, I won’t have to wait four more years to have another chance to test myself.

bald eagle

bald eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

 

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Through the branches

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , , , , , on February 13, 2018| 7 Comments »

This majestic Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) was partially hidden behind some branches yesterday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, but I managed to find a visual tunnel and capture this image of it. Most of the time I prefer an uncluttered background, but in this case I really like the organic shapes and patterns of the out-of-focus branches.

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Bald eagle at the beach

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , , , , , on February 3, 2018| 4 Comments »

When it is frigid and windy, perhaps your imagination turns to a tropical beach somewhere. Maybe that is what this Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) was thinking yesterday when it perched at water’s edge at low tide at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, when the wind chill made it feel like it was way below the freezing level.

As you may be able to tell, I was shooting almost directly into the sun, which forced me to significantly overexpose the shot to keep the eagle from looking like a silhouette. I really like the way that the way that the water turned an almost pastel turquoise, enhancing the sense of this being a tropical location, at least in my mind.

Bald Eagle at the beach

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Nesting Bald Eagle

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , , , , , , on January 25, 2018| 3 Comments »

From a distance I was able to catch a glimpse of a nesting Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) last week at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I love the way that this shot shows the awesome structure of the tree in which the eagles built their nest.

As I mentioned in an earlier posting, officials at the wildlife refuge have blocked of roads near this nest to keep the eagles from being  unnecessarily disturbed by human activity. I captured this image from behind the barriers. As nesting activity continues, I suspect that the barriers will be pushed even further back, so I decided to get this shot while I was still able to do so.

Once I was aware of the presence of the eagle in the nest I attempted to be as stealthy as I could in approaching the barrier, which is a little tough to do when you are standing in the middle of a wide trail with fields on both sides. I stayed low and left after I had taken a few shots.

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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Love or anger?

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , , , , , on January 24, 2018| 8 Comments »

Is this love or anger or a bit of both? Relationships of any sort are complicated and I don’t know enough about eagle behavior to interpret the interaction between these two Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) that I observed one morning last week at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

Sharp-eyed reader viewers may have noted that these two eagles are perched on the same branch where I previously photographed an eagle couple. The branch is part of a tree in which there is a nest that I am now relatively certain is an eagle nest. It is a pretty good distance off of the path and partially hidden, so I am hoping that the wildlife will judge that passing humans won’t unduly disturb what may become nesting eagles and will leave the path open.

As for the behavior, I must admit that I am a bit romantic and couldn’t help but note how the space between their beaks forms a heart. I’m voting therefore for love.

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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Bald Eagle Squabble

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , , , , , on January 17, 2018| 3 Comments »

No matter how much you love someone, minor squabbles are virtually inevitable and sometimes they can get quite heated. I am not sure what was being discussed, but the members of this Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) couple seemed to have differing views that they defended loudly and emphatically on Monday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

In many ways this photo embodies what I most love to capture when I go out with my camera. Although it is wonderful to capture a static subject, it is even more wonderful to capture some action or even better some interaction. I think viewers are drawn into the drama and emotion of the moment and creatively try to imagine what was going on in the photo. Are these angry birds? Is this how eagles express love? We, of course, can’t know the true explanation for the behavior that I document, but that sense of mystery and incertitude can sometimes further stimulate our imagination.

I didn’t see this couple kiss and make up, but a short time later they took off together, apparently having resolved whatever problem had prompted their little squabble.

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Scratching an itch

Posted in Birds, Humor, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , , on January 16, 2018| 4 Comments »

You have to be really careful scratching an itch if you have big talons like this Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) that I spotted yesterday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

At least one of the eagle couples has recently been observed building a nest, so already a number of paths in the wildlife refuge are now blocked. As I wandered around the refuge, I did spot several eagle couples and some possible nests—it is hard for me to tell if a possible nest is an eagle nest or an osprey nest. Unlike the nest in the closed area, these nests are far enough away from the paths that the human presence is less likely to disturb the eagles. It is at times like this that I am thankful that my telephoto zoom lens extends out to 600mm.

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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Howling at the moon

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , , , , , on December 31, 2017| 1 Comment »

The moon rose in mid-afternoon on Fridat at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge and it looked like this Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) was howling at the moon. In reality, I think it might have been calling out to its mate.

As you can probably notice, I was shooting almost straight up when I took this shot. I had spotted the eagle from a distance through the branches of a tree and was able to creep relatively close to it before I had to move to an exposed position. I don’t think that the eagle had seen me yet when I took this shot, so I probably was not the cause of the eagle crying out.

The image is a bit more cluttered with branches than I would have preferred, but I really like the pose that I was able to capture, particularly the details of the beak and the eye.

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

 

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Eagles on ice

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , , , , on December 30, 2017| 3 Comments »

As I was tracking a pair of Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) yesterday in the sky over Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, I was surprised when they landed in the distance on the ice. I have no idea why they did so, but they stood there on the ice for a long time.

Were they just chilling? Did they want to try ice skating? Could they see a fish through the ice? I have lots of questions and few answers, but it was definitely a cool sighting.

Bald Eagles

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Not yet bald Bald Eagle

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , , on December 30, 2017| 2 Comments »

Folks with more experience can tell the age of this immature Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) from its colors and the pattern of its plumage. As for me, I was thrilled to get a shot of it when it flew over me yesterday at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

I found a helpful posting on-line, A Guide To Aging Bald Eagles by Ron Dudley, that provides helpful tips and photographs for determining the age of an immature Bald Eagle. I am not completely certain, but it looks like this eagle may be in its second or third year, though I would welcome a correction or clarification from someone who has more experience with birds than I do.

immature Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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Henpecked husband

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , , , , , on December 29, 2017| 9 Comments »

A Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) perched on the top of a post this morning at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge looked for a moment like it was going to pounce on another eagle that had just landed on a platform attached to the post. Apparently the larger eagle, almost certainly, decided she had something to say to her mate and was merely hopping down to his level and she landed really close to him.

The female eagle seemed unhappy with him and made several loud cries in his direction. He just stood there and took it and in the third shot has the look of a henpecked husband. Apparently she also told him that he needed to perch on the upper post. Perhaps this is the eagle equivalent of sleeping on the couch.

Bald Eagles

Bald Eagles

Bald Eagles

Bald Eagles

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Soaring eagle

Posted in Birds, Christmas, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , , , , , on December 28, 2017| 5 Comments »

The wind was blowing hard on Christmas Day at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge and one of the Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) took to the sky, spread its impressive wings, and effortlessly soared above me for a short while.

I really enjoyed the Christmas show.

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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Ruffles and flourishes

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , on December 22, 2017| 3 Comments »

Sometimes you have to ruffle a few feathers if you want to look good. That was certainly the case for this Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) that I spotted this past Monday morning at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

The eagle poked about with its beak among its feathers and occasionally would shake its entire body to fluff the feathers. I managed to position myself at almost a perfect distance—I was able to observe and photograph the eagle without disturbing it.

As a wildlife photographer, I need to constantly remind myself of the need to be respectful of the creatures whose images I am seeking to capture. This is especially true in the winter, when survival for some of them may be a challenge and I try to minimize my interference with their hunting or food gathering. It’s almost inevitable that I will spook some of them, but my long telephoto zoom lens helps me to keep a good distance between me and potential subjects.

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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All I want for Christmas is you

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, Portraits, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , , , , , on December 20, 2017| 6 Comments »

If one Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) is good, two are even better. The challenge with any couple,though, is to get both of them to smile for you and look at the camera. This was the eagle couple’s best pose on Monday morning at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

Bald Eagle couple

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Looking right at me

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , , , on December 19, 2017| 4 Comments »

It’s tough to sneak up on eagles. Their eyesight is so sharp and their reactions so quick that it is a real challenge to spot them before they spot you and take to the air. Yesterday, though, this Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge looked right at me and yet remained in place for a little while before finally taking off.

I had spotted the Bald Eagle from a pretty good distance away and had been slowly moving closer to it. There were a lot of branches between me and the eagle, so it was virtually impossible to get an unobstructed shot.

I tried to move mostly when the eagle was looking away, but I am confident that it detected me and stared right at me, as you can see in the first image. The eagle seemed to contemplate the situation for a few moments and turned its head toward the water. Eventually the eagle decided to depart and took off, giving me a wonderful view of the underside of its white tail feathers.

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

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Hidden eagle

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, Winter, tagged , , , , , , on December 18, 2017| 4 Comments »

When they are perched in the open or at the end of bare branches, Bald Eagles are not hard to spot. When they are hidden deeper in the trees, though, it can be a real challenge to see them, like this Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) that I came upon on 8 December at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Bald Eagle with fish

Posted in Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on December 9, 2017| 11 Comments »

When a Bald Eagle took off from a perch with its partially-eaten fish yesterday morning at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, I didn’t zoom out fast enough to photograph its entire wingspan, but did manage to capture a rather fierce expression.

I spotted the eagle in the tree from a long way off and tried to approach it as quickly and cautiously as I could. The eagle was facing away from me and seemed to have its head pointing downward. Once I got a bit closer, I could see that the eagle was focused on eating a freshly-caught fish, which is why, I assume, it was not alert to my approach.

Every now and then, the eagle would look up from its late breakfast and do a survey of its surroundings, as you can see in the second photo. I think that it was during ones of these surveys that it spotted me. I was still a pretty good distance from the tree in which the eagle was perched, but I was standing at the edge of a wide path, so I was not exactly camouflaged,

Without any warning, the eagle took to the air, making sure to bring along the partially-consumed fish. I didn’t have much time to react, but was thrilled with the image that I was able to capture as the eagle zoomed toward me. I really like the eagle’s expression and the way that I was able to capture the white tail feathers.

I watched as the eagle flew to a distant perch, where it could finish its meal without further interruption,

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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Bald Eagle Couple

Posted in Autumn, Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on November 21, 2017| 14 Comments »

Seeing one Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) is pretty exciting, but seeing two together is even more awesome. I spotted these two eagles on Monday morning at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge.

At a certain location within the refuge there is a tall pole, which resembles a telephone pole, with a wooden platform. I am not sure of its purpose, but several times in the past I have seen a bald eagle perching on it. I have tried several times to get shots of the eagle, but have generally been unsuccessful, because of the height of the pole and the fact that I cannot get close to it.

When I spotted an eagle there yesterday morning, I decided to give it another shot, hoping that my monopod would help me to get a sharp enough shot to survive a severe crop. As my eye was pressed to the viewfinder taking some shots, imagine my surprise when another bald eagle entered the frame and landed next to the first one. They perched together for a little while and then the larger of the two, which I later learned is the female, began to embrace the other, eventually using her beak to give what looked like a kind of massage. What was going on?

Thanks to some experienced birders in a Facebook group, I learned that the breeding season for eagles in our area begins in early December and that this is likely a bonded pair. I also discovered that the pecking that I observed, as seen in the second photo below, is almost certainly a kind of courting behavior.

I think that there may be several pairs of bald eagles at this wildlife refuge, so I will keep my eyes open for more of this kind of behavior and for more photographic opportunities.

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

 

 

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Sneaking up on a Bald Eagle

Posted in Autumn, Birds, Nature, Photography, wildlife, tagged , , , , , , on November 19, 2017| 1 Comment »

It’s almost impossible to sneak up on a Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus), but that didn’t stop me from attempting to do so this past Friday afternoon at Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge. I was walking along a trail that runs to parallel to the water when I spotted the unmistakable white head of a Bald Eagle. The eagle was partially hidden in a mass of branches and was facing away from me, so I moved forward with as much stealth as I could manage.

When I reached a point where I was shooting up at a rather steep angle, I stopped and waited, hoping the eagle would turn its head to the side and offer me a glimpse of its eyes. Eventually that happened and I shifted from side to side in a desperate attempt to capture an unobstructed view of its eye. Clearly this is not the best shot of a Bald Eagle that I have ever captured, but I do like the pose and the details in its feathers. Besides, it’s a Bald Eagle, a subject that never fails to excite me.

Bald Eagle

© Michael Q. Powell. All rights reserved.

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