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America’s bald eagle population continues to soar
- hprotagonist 6y agoThere's a nesting pair near my house these days. Majestic looking birds, and they sound like seagulls with brain damage :)
- ahelwer 6y agoAbsolute lies, they sound exactly like a red-tailed hawk.
- reportingsjr 6y agoYou've been watching too many movies then! https://youtu.be/PQ2uMauyBow?t=35 https://youtu.be/PQ2uMauyBow?t=35 I was doing some trail building this last fall and there was a red tailed hawk nest across the valley. It was pretty amazing to hear that classic "eagle" call every now and again while working.
- ISL 6y agoI'm fairly certain that GP was making a joke.
- jimmyed 6y agoOP = original poster GP = ?
- wnevets 6y agoGrand Parent?
- NortySpock 6y agoGrandparent Poster, so two (or more) replies above.
- Igelau 6y agoOPP = other people's posts
- reportingsjr 6y agoI assumed as much, but wanted to provide info to people who might not be aware while also making a bit of a joke myself.
- nowandlater 6y agolol, they definitely sound like monkeys.
- snarf21 6y agoThis is great news. It is really about the pesticides more than anything else. In my area, hawks are EVERYWHERE. I see at least 1 every 5 miles along the highway (farmland) watching for food. This was not true 20 years ago.
- ryanmcbride 6y agoAnecdotally I've been seeing a lot more birds of prey in my area over the last 10 years or so too. They're so cool to watch.
- NittLion78 6y agoYou still see a lot of them being brought into wildlife rescue hospitals for lead poisoning from having eaten birdshot or in some other way ingesting fired ammunition. Seems to be the biggest issue in the Midwest for them, anyway. Either way, as a kid I remember being told to assume you'd never see one and they'd probably be extinct in my lifetime. Now I couldn't even tell you how many I've seen, from as far east as PA and north to AK.
- JoeAltmaier 6y agoI see reports about 'a dozen' etc suffering from lead ingestion. But no national statistics, just anecdotes. Considering that hunters shoot millions of lead bullets each year, it seems a small problem? It's suggested that birds eat guts from eviscerated animals that hunters leave behind. Perhaps a policy of burying or scattering the guts would solve the problem?
- hkarthik 6y agoIt's a much smaller scale problem than the pesticide issue. Here in Northern California, we're actually unable to use poisons on pest rodents like squirrels and rats since they often enter the ecosystem through raptors ingesting them. My friends with a lot of land were advised to get pellet guns and air rifles to deal with their squirrel problems. It's considered the lowest impact to the ecosystem and food chain.
- tomatotomato37 6y agoI find it amusing the article had to clarify the lower 48 states. In the majority of the United States bald eagles are a rare and majestic sight. In Alaska they are on par with seagulls.
- eevilspock 6y ago"According to scientists from the Service’s Migratory Bird Program, the bald eagle population climbed to an estimated 316,700 individual bald eagles in the lower 48 states." Alaska Department of Fish and Game[1]: "Found only in North America, bald eagles are more abundant in Alaska than anywhere else in the United States. The Alaska population is estimated at 30,000 birds." So you think they bent over backwards, and dishonestly at that, for a 10% change in reported count? Also, "on par with seagulls"? --- [1] http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=baldeagle.main http://www.adfg.alaska.gov/index.cfm?adfg=baldeagle.main
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- resist_futility 6y ago“Amusing” “on par with seagulls” meaning seeing 100 in one single area
- dmoy 6y agoAlso note that 30k Alaska number is from 2008
- Arrath 6y agoOh yeah. Very majestic birds, until you see a dozen of 'em squabbling over prime spots on the village garbage scow. Alaska is on an entirely different level.
- cgh 6y agoWe have a couple thousand of them in my town on a seasonal basis every year because they feed on the spawning salmon. They are a bit of a tourist attraction.
- nashashmi 6y agoI had the fortune of seeing two bald eagles at a landfill. Apparently they are very common at landfills.
- wiredfool 6y agoBald Eagles are HUGE. You don't realize it until one drops out of a tree near you and flies off. Either that or you see them feeding on road kill deer.
- wirrbel 6y agoI am always reminded of this meme https://img.ifunny.co/images/70898eeb8bc2323e320aca74b03bb9aa3bcb8a5fd3586abe0137fb1751afaf3a_1.jpg https://img.ifunny.co/images/70898eeb8bc2323e320aca74b03bb9a... "Basically a glorified seagull"
- asdff 6y agoHonestly, seagulls are huge birds too. Male bald eagle has about the same wingspan as a seagull (5-6 feet).
- globular-toast 6y agoHerring gulls also live for 30-40 years.
- wirrbel 6y agoIf you look up the numbers the Wedge Tail Eagle has the same wing span as the bald eagle.
- globular-toast 6y agoSo it's basically "my bird could beat up your bird". In the UK our national bird is the Robin :)
- arethuza 6y agoSounds like the couple of times I've seen white tailed eagles near where I live in Scotland - I can see why they are called "flying barn doors".
- danaliv 6y agoI get fly-bys from bald eagles in the traffic pattern at an airport I frequent. Even from the cockpit they look enormous. Definitely don’t want one of those monsters to wind up on a leading edge. Incidentally it’s interesting how many raptors seem to like hanging around in airport traffic patterns. I realize there’s a bit of a selection bias here, but I do work at similar altitudes away from airports and sightings aren’t nearly as common out in the field. I like to think they’re reminding the metal birds who’s boss.
- jjathman 6y agoIs there any doubt that in today's political environment we never would be able to pull this same conservation effort off? We'd hear endless reports from Republicans about how DDT really isn't that bad, how scientists are lying, and how we couldn't possibly do anything to "hurt the economy".
- sparker72678 6y agoNice to get some good news.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- blacktriangle 6y agoNot if you're a rabbit.
- Arrath 6y agoOr small dog. I was at a campground in Alaska that had plenty of signs posted re: keeping your pets indoors. Well, someone chose to let their little poodle out of their RV and an eagle took a chance to have a snack. The aftermath looked like someone hit a feather pillow with a shotgun.
- dcanelhas 6y agoHow small a dog are we talking about? pug/chiuaua-sized? Not sure I understood what actually happened. Did the bird take the dog and leave some feathers behind? Did the dog shred the bird? Did the dog's owner shoot the bird with a shotgun?
- Arrath 6y agoThe dog wasn't more than 10-15 pounds, miniature french poodle looking thing. Sorry for being unclear, but the aftermath was all the fuzzy dog hair that got scattered everywhere from the impact. Dog was done for, owner didn't have time to react beyond scream and try to get the Park Ranger to "DO SOMETHING ABOUT THESE DANGEROUS BIRDS"
- dcanelhas 6y agoI've heard of wolves being hunted using golden eagles in Mongolia, they're not much larger than a bald eagle. I wish the biohackers would bring back Haast's eagle.
- ehaskins 6y agoThe National Eagle Center in Wabasha, MN has several eagles which were injured now live there. Definitely worth the trip to stand within 10ft of several Eagles, and there are usually plenty of wild eagles within sight of there as well. https://www.nationaleaglecenter.org https://www.nationaleaglecenter.org
- abcanthur 6y agoMore anecdata, I know of a catfish processor a few miles inland from the Mississippi River (the bluffs of the Mississippi are one of their favorite habitats) in Wisconsin where they scatter fish carcasses in the fields during the winter. I have seen flocks of no less than one hundred bald eagles in the field and roosted in the nearby trees. This is interesting to me regarding the view of Bald Eagles as apex predators (America!) or scavengers (like seeing them at a landfill). They are certainly both. I've gotten within yards of them a few times while cycling in the same area; they will be feeding on roadkill and they fly off just as I quietly roll up to them. They are huge, beautiful, totally majestic, very believable to imagine them flying off with a small lamb or nightmare scenario, a toddler.
- howenterprisey 6y agoThere are probably other regional raptor centers that could be a bit closer; <place name> raptor center usually brings something up. In California, for instance, there's at least the Ojai Raptor Center, although I dunno how visitor-friendly they are.
- NDizzle 6y agoI just moved back to Arkansas after being in California for 20 years. Here's a picture a local took along AR highway 59. 7 bald eagles hanging out. https://scontent-dfw5-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/155912289_4304483929580794_5718707273355227148_n.jpg?_nc_cat=110&ccb=1-3&_nc_sid=b9115d&_nc_ohc=9OzlIT2l7u4AX9znY_S&_nc_ht=scontent-dfw5-1.xx&oh=2a476c19285c5b55c8d226da693e8a28&oe=607FCC79 https://scontent-dfw5-1.xx.fbcdn.net/v/t1.0-9/155912289_4304... I have some good shots of one eating breakfast behind my house as well. Kind of gory though.
- xiaolingxiao 6y agoso much freedom!
- medium_burrito 6y agoI've seen the same in driving up to Vancouver from YVR. Freedom spills over the border!
- vizzier 6y agoIf you pop down to the Tswassen ferry from vanouver you might get to see something along the lines of this too: https://www.vancouverisawesome.com/vancouver-news/worlds-largest-eagle-gathering-bc-2827193 https://www.vancouverisawesome.com/vancouver-news/worlds-lar...
- longshui 6y agoallow the pigeon to disagree
- throwaway894345 6y agoBald Eagles don't eat pigeon. Are you thinking of the Peregrine Falcon? Or am I misunderstanding your reference?
- stjohnswarts 6y ago
- abstractbarista 6y agoWow, this is great to hear! I'm in North Carolina, and we have a beautiful (man-made) lake called Jordan Lake where the eagles can be frequently seen. I've been out on boats before and watched them grab fish out of the water. Then you see them fly up to a nest and chill. :) It's truly amazing.
- 29athrowaway 6y agoBald eagles eat fish and other animals like squirrels and prairie dogs. The size and health of the bald eagle population is also an indicator of the health and size of the species they use as food.
- ryanianian 6y agoYou'll also see collars of domestic dogs and cats in raptor nests. This is a frightening new thing to watch for in the semi-rural area near my parents' house. They're used to looking out for coyotes and raccoons which can be dangerous to pets. It's comparatively harder to eagle-proof a back yard.
- hinkley 6y agoI know of someone who keeps hawks away from his chickens by interrupting flight paths into and out of his yard with plants of various size and spacing. Trees and trellises should help, but if you want a tiny dog and a big playground for your riding lawnmower, you're in for some disappointments.
- wnevets 6y agoAnother environmental regulation success story.
- mason55 6y agoSaw one flying over an intersection in suburban Colorado just last weekend. I had seen them "in the wild" before (e.g. while river rafting in PA) but it was interesting to see one while I was just out running errands.
- ngoldbaum 6y agoThere’s a nest and nesting pair you can see really clearly from the wildlife viewing area at Barr Lake State Park, about a mile and a half from the parking lot. Helps to have a telephoto lens or decent pair of binoculars, although when I was there a few weeks ago there were several just hanging out in trees right next to trails.
- kaycebasques 6y agoThey became a somewhat common sight for me in Bremerton, Washington and I just saw one in Pittsburgh.
- dclaw 6y agoHappy to finally see them soaring here in California. Around this time last year I finally spotted one in the wild flying above my yard, it was tagged and everything. Gorgeous site to see.
- alistairSH 6y agoRaptors are always amazing to watch. In flight, at rest, nesting, feeding/hunting. So cool. My house backs a golf course and we currently have a nesting pair of red-tail hawks about 200 yards away. Every once in a while, one soars by with a snake in beak. They also tussle with the local crows (who I assume are tying to snatch eggs).
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- dcanelhas 6y agoI felt compelled to voice my appreciation for the double-entendre of this title.
- umvi 6y agoI would say the title is just using a plain old pun... "double entendre" usually implies there is a way to sexually interpret the phrase
- mikeg8 6y agoBald eagle can also refer to a woman’s shaved... aka Brazilian
- dcanelhas 6y agoOh, I didn't know that! I thought the expression simply meant double understanding/meaning.
- everly 6y agoHuh, I also thought that and was surprised to learn this. I'm curious how many people assume the same, as it seems to have become descriptively defined as any wordplay based on a dual-meaning. Typically, I'm a fan of nuanced definitions because it makes language more useful but, in this case, I'll probably keep using it the same way because I don't feel that the sexual requirement adds much value. 'Pun' probably works in most cases but not all puns are double-meaning and puns also have a cornier/less clever connotation IME.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- pwython 6y agohttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_entendre https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_entendre
- elwell 6y agoRelaxing work buddy to keep on your third monitor: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zE6qcgTox8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6zE6qcgTox8
- alistairSH 6y agoVideo of video-equipment installation... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cu4Motcpq5A https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cu4Motcpq5A Not just one random eagle enthusiast, but a whole team of volunteers.
- blueberry_47 6y agoX years into living in an area where bald eagles are "common" I still act like a little kid when I see one. Stunning birds.
- jimmyed 6y agoMy stomach was ready to drop towards the end of the sentence, but the climax made my heart soar.
- ChrisMarshallNY 6y agoWe have them on Long Island. In fact, a nesting pair has been in a nearby town for a few years. They have their own Facebook group: https://www.facebook.com/groups/baldeaglesofcenterportNY https://www.facebook.com/groups/baldeaglesofcenterportNY Centerport is a fairly well-off community, so they have some powerful allies (and you see some expen$ive camera gear). Their call is...unimpressive. I call it "The call of the sick gull." The classic "eagle" call is actually a redtail (we have them, too).
- alistairSH 6y agoTheir call is...unimpressive. I call it "The call of the sick gull." I had to Google it. So true. Like a song-bird crossed with nails-on-chalkboard. And the red-tail, which I have heard locally, is the stuff of (mouse/snake) nightmares.
- boulos 6y agoMovies often dub a redtail hawk scream over bald eagle footage! https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=156187375 https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=156187...
- eventualhorizon 6y agoCan confirm. Have Red Tail nesting pair in my back yard. Have heard them a couple of times today.
- hinkley 6y agoAre all of these birds from the same 800 bird gene pool or were birds relocated from Canada and Alaska?
- disambiguation 6y agoThis remind me of a PlanetMoney episode from a while ago > https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2017/02/03/513302816/episode-752-eagles-vs-chickens https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2017/02/03/513302816/epis... > Over time, though, Harris's worldview changed. He started to see the downside to the industrial farming ... To replace the chemical fertilizer, he brought in chickens and let them roam free. Free-range chickens would fertilize the grass; the grass would nurture the cattle, and shoppers at Whole Foods would love Harris's organic beef. ... But then, the eagles started to descend on Harris's farm. Eagles eat chicken. Eagles love chicken. Since eagles are protected by law, the farmer wasn't allowed to hunt and clear the eagles from preying on his organic operation. No good deed goes unpunished?
- tw04 6y agoWhich is why you have dogs to protect your livestock. I think people forget that man's best friend became that way by doing jobs for us. Want your cattle and chickens protected from wolves, fox, eagles, etc? Train some dogs to protect them.
- whimsicalism 6y agoAh but you see that doesn't scale to industrial size non-industrial farming.
- frankfrankfrank 6y agoAre you actually aware of dogs protecting free-range chickens against bald eagles? I am not sure that bald eagles really care about dogs. A bald eagle will swoop down and snatch a chicken or even two and fly away without even landing. That being said I think an even very loose "netting" that can consist of simply rope criss-crossing with certain gaps can sufficiently dissuade eagles and even other prey birds.
- tw04 6y ago>Are you actually aware of dogs protecting free-range chickens against bald eagles? At any given time I've got 3-5 bald eagles in the woods around my house. There are 3 houses with chickens in the neighborhood. The eagles won't go anywhere near a yard with a dog - I'm quite confident they aren't dumb enough to tangle with a large dog unless they have no other option for food. I have no doubt if an eagle was starving to death it might tangle with the dog and might even win, but I don't think that would be their first, second, or fifth choice if there were other food options.
- gullywhumper 6y agoI live about 3/4 mile up river from a nest along the Mississippi River. My office overlooks the river and I keep a log of every time I see one flying by. You can walk almost under the nest, and when they're home you can get a sense of just how large they are. After 4 years of living here it never gets old - I dread the day we have to move.
- kebman 6y agoMan, I really want to see one some day! Made me think of this story telling of an eagle allegedly swooping down and snatching a toddler right from the ground on the island Leka in Norway. She was apparently playing in a blanket, so the talons didn't scratch her, but she was carried almost two kilometres away. The ordeal triggered a search party that eventually found her almost 200 metres up the mountain side, unschated. Norwegian source: https://www.nettavisen.no/artikkel/ble-svanhild-2-tatt-av-ornen/s/12-95-1088763 https://www.nettavisen.no/artikkel/ble-svanhild-2-tatt-av-or... So if you live in eagle territory, you better watch your children. ;) Anyway, I remember trying to video those things where I grew up. But they were pretty shy, so I could never get close enough to get a good picture of them. Really amazing bird though not Bald Eagles given that I'm from Europe. If you've got the patience and the equipment to get good pictures of those, then kudos to you, because that's not easy!
- farnsworth 6y agoMove to Seattle, I used to see one almost every day on my commute where it would hang out above the 520 bridge, presumably fishing in Lake Washington.
- 0xfaded 6y agoI've shared a thermal wingtip to wingtip with one soaring under a hang glider.
- lostlogin 6y agoI wish the Haast eagle was still around. They were just massive and hunted Moa. They were likely hunted by humans. I guess I should be careful what I wish for. https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haast%27s_eagle https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Haast%27s_eagle
- mkl 6y agoI think it's more that all the big birds the eagles hunted were hunted by humans. It wasn't just moa, the other big birds are gone too. E.g. search for New Zealand here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Island_gigantism https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Island_gigantism
- datavirtue 6y agoPun intended
- TheCondor 6y agoXcel Energy has a great Bald Eagle camera near one of their energy generation plants in Colorado https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAy3rgJszQg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fAy3rgJszQg It's insanely addictive. Over 40 eaglets have hatched out of there since they've been counting. Also potentially interesting to this crowd, the energy plant is natural gas but was originally a thorium nuclear plant.
- duxup 6y agoI grew up living along the Missouri River. Eagles of any sort were a rare site as a child. It was a big deal when we saw one or one visited the area for a while. The small town paper would even publish photos and stories when was nearby near for a while. After nearly two decades I left the area and sightings of bald eagles were just run of the mill every day events like any other bird. I live elsewhere now and a couple pairs of bald eagles live in a urban / suburban area near me seemingly quite healthy and happy. It has been a pretty amazing change.
- subsubzero 6y agoIn California I have never seen a bald eagle(besides a zoo), and I have lived here almost 90% of my life, both north and south. Having lived in Colorado for a few years they were seen somewhat regularly, maybe once every 2 months or so, One day I saw three in one day and was blown away.
- robinsord 6y agoDid you never leave your house? They’re literally everywhere in Ojai. You can go on a walk at the lake and see them nesting 24/7 in broad daylight.
- roland35 6y agoLots of bald eagles are around Ohio now too! I never remember seeing any 20 years ago but now we have a few nests in our neighborhood.
- goshx 6y agoThere’s a nest here in South Florida which a couple uses every year. I hope the neighbor with a drone hasn’t caused them to move permanently. Also, in Cape Canaveral there is a nest on the way to the Apollo/Saturn V center. I was lucky to see one of the eagles resting on top of the building when I went to watch a Falcon 9 launch.
- ravieira 6y agoI saw one earlier this year flying over a pond in Southwest Georgia where they seem to be rare. It is truly a beautiful bird!
- hctaw 6y agoI wonder if they can do anything about the carp problem in the midwest
- kibwen 6y agoRelatedly, peregrine falcons were removed from the endangered species list in 1999 after decades of conservation efforts. Since 2002 there's been a persistent falcon nest up on the 40th floor of Pittsburgh's Cathedral of Learning, here's a live feed (looks like the mother just laid her third egg two days ago and the falcons have begun incubating): https://www.aviary.org/birds-habitats/live-streams/ https://www.aviary.org/birds-habitats/live-streams/ EDIT: Aaaand yep, there's the fourth egg. :)
- mkl 6y agoLess relatedly than they might seem though. Falcons are more closely related to parrots than to eagles.
- rdiddly 6y agoThis seems as good a time/place as any to remind everyone that the sound an eagle makes isn't the screech Hollywood has made you believe it is (that's a red-tailed hawk). It's actually relatively non-macho (for a superpower's mascot anyway) and sounds like it's laughing. The hawk says: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red-tailed_Hawk/sounds https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Red-tailed_Hawk/sounds The eagle says: https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Bald_Eagle/sounds https://www.allaboutbirds.org/guide/Bald_Eagle/sounds
- WalterBright 6y agoI wish hollywood would make a few more recordings. They always use exactly the same one, every time they have a long shot of a wilderness scene. Movies, TV shows, documentaries, everything. It's worse than the Wilhelm Scream.
- rdiddly 6y agoAbsolutely, I was already thinking Wilhelm Scream as I finally arrived at those words in your comment! Edit: What we need is a satirical movie full of in-jokes, like opening a wilderness long-shot with a Wilhelm Scream.
- stjohnswarts 6y agoAlso most sitcom clapping and laughter is from the 50s
- WalterBright 6y agoIn Married With Children, I hear the same woman laughing in about every episode!
- smazga 6y agoThere’s also a stock audio sound for police radio chatter that is the same as the one in SimCity 2000. Every time I hear that (which is too often) I can’t help but think “well, you cheaped out on sound design"
- partiallypro 6y agoThere are now bald eagles around here in Nashville. I have never seen one in the wild before until recently. It might not be a good thing, if I'm being honest.
- jimmaswell 6y agoI never saw them as a kid, then one day they started showing up along the Hudson River again. They don't seem to stray far from the water though.
- WalterBright 6y agoThey are always circling over my yard, as they have a nest in the nearby greenbelt. The fun thing is there's a line through my property. The eagles' territory is west of the line, the hawks' is to the east. Sometimes they fight over the location of that line. The hawks are half the size of the eagles, but they don't take no ** from the eagles, and it's a fair fight. The hawks usually win the tussle and drive the eagles back over the line. It's like a WW1 aerial dogfight. And this is in the middle of the Seattle metropolitan area.
- throwanem 6y agoWhat kind of hawks, do you know?
- WalterBright 6y agoI was told once, but forgot. I just remembered "hawk".
- post_below 6y agoAs superpower mascots go, I think the eagle turned out to be pretty much perfect. Large, powerful, masters of their environment, noble from a distance. Up close, easily scared, shameless scavengers who love the opportunity to steal prey from other creatures. Note: No intention of starting a political conversation, as a resident of said superpower I just love the irony.
- kilroy123 6y agoI've seen one in the wild. Actually a beautiful animal.
- throwanem 6y agoI've seen many in the wild. There is no less visually interesting raptor on the planet, including vultures.
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- systemvoltage 6y agoIf your intent wasn’t to start a political flame war, what is the insight you’re providing here? Every animal needs to survive and will do anything to get by including scavenging. That’s nature. At this very moment, millions of things are getting eaten alive. Welcome to the brutality of Mother Nature. It’s not very charitable to say something deeply provocative and putting a note to defend. It only reflects your prejudice.
- verall 6y ago> Every animal needs to survive and will do anything to get by including scavenging. Yea, and so do nations. The descriptors they used feel conformable describing both the nation and the mascot. It's not deeply provocative. It is a comparison that is interesting to read, because it describes how nations and animals can act similarly, but on difference scales.
- frabjoused 6y agoI just got back from meeting some friends in Blaine, WA. Bald eagles hanging out everywhere.
- thruhiker 6y agoI was rafting in Montana last summer and we got the treat of seeing several osprey and eagles during our trip. Such cool birds of prey!
- cooperadymas 6y agoWhile not related to the bald eagle population rise, which has been going up for over a decade, I heard a theory about third and fourth order effects of the pandemic that involved rise in predator species like eagles. Basically, with fewer cars on the road for a large stretch of last spring, small critter populations would boom since automobile death is one of the leading modern causes of death in young critters. With the population of small animals on the rise, predators would have more accessible food sources allowing their populations to rise over the following years. I have no idea how this is holding up or whether its based in reality but I found it an interesting way to think about unintended consequences of a large shift in the modern way of living.
- abraae 6y agoNot sure about in the US but here in NZ, birds of prey such as Australasian Harriers thrive by eating roadkill. It's common to round a corner and find one struggling to take off from the carcass it is eating in the middle of the road.
- hermanoreis 6y agoGosh. Started reading the headline and thought: oh no, another NFT? Then I read the rest of the title. :) :)
- citilife 6y agoThe other day, I saw an eagle hunting over my neighborhood pond. Frankly, I was shocked to see it. Definitely appreciate the wildlife returning.
- funkattack 6y agoDoes remembering this: https://www.upi.com/Archives/1982/06/09/Americas-bald-eagle-population-grew-by-two-Wednesday/3708392443200/ https://www.upi.com/Archives/1982/06/09/Americas-bald-eagle-... make me old?
- Igelau 6y agoRemembering West Germany is indeed a symptom of the oldness.
- yosito 6y agoI was just thinking this past weekend about how bald eagles are endangered and how it would be so cool to see one some day. I'm American, but I've spent very little of the last 10 years in the US. I was taught in grade school that bald eagles were endangered and I had no idea that they were making a comeback. Very cool!
- deleted 6y ago[deleted]
- nxpnsv 6y agoIs there a word for puns that are not jokes, like this title?
- PostThisTooFast 6y agoAren't bald eagles profoundly stupid? I won't draw the obvious parallel...
- notenoughbeans 6y agoI had to chase one out of my yard the other day after it killed one of my chickens. I hadn't realised how large it was until it flew a metre over my head.
- overcast 6y agoBig Bear Bald Eagle Cam https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7utMaDb1W08 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7utMaDb1W08
- dreamcompiler 6y agoIf you want to see bald eagles, go to Juneau. They almost outnumber people there. https://www.juneautours.com/bald-eagles-in-juneau-alaska/ https://www.juneautours.com/bald-eagles-in-juneau-alaska/
- KorematsuFred 6y agoWhen I had come to USA I had only heard about bald eagle and never seen one. San Diego Safari park had one caged bald eagle which had hurt its beak and wings so badly that it could only survive in Captivity. It was a holy F** moment for me as the bird was damn majestic and lot larger and intimidating than what I would expect from a bird. Garuda - the hindi word for Eagle, is often described as the vehicle of Lord Vishnu, one of the powerful Hindu Gods. Bald Eagle would be perfect match for that job.
- globular-toast 6y agoWhat if they start to cause problems? Will they be culled?
- fallingfrog 6y agoI saw an eagle try to get a baby loon last year at a lake in Maine. The mama loon was on the spot though. The eagle came in fast and low, mama loon raised a terrific racket and got between the chick and the eagle. They struck together and the eagle flew away without its prize. Loons are large, strong birds. Quite a sight to see. After that both parents stayed right by the chick for a while. I do like loons better than eagles. Hopefully the expanding eagle population doesn’t put too much pressure on the loons. Loons have about 3 chicks every year but only about 1 year out of 3 do any of them survive, even with both parents protecting them. They make up for it by being very long lived birds (30 years or more).
- WarOnPrivacy 6y agoSon and I saw a bald eagle 5 days ago (WC FL).
- hikerclimb 6y agoHopefully this is false news.