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A Bald Eagle Swimming! This eagle had taken down a lone Canada goose and not being able to “lift off” with its prize had to swim to shore using its wings. Their usual prey is fish but they are hard to find and there are many, too many, Canada geese around. I am surprised that the geese are not a more frequent target. Bald Eagle,Canada,Geotagged,Haliaeetus leucocephalus Click/tap to enlarge Promoted

A Bald Eagle Swimming!

This eagle had taken down a lone Canada goose and not being able to “lift off” with its prize had to swim to shore using its wings. Their usual prey is fish but they are hard to find and there are many, too many, Canada geese around. I am surprised that the geese are not a more frequent target.

    comments (9)

  1. View Ferdy Christant's profile
    Ferdy Christant
    Lion
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    That's amazing! Is it still holding the goose underwater? Posted 3 years ago
    1. View gary fast's profile
      gary fast
      Lion
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      Yes, it seems that in fact, it can’t let go. The bird has to go to shore to relax the muscles. And, yes, it pulled the goose all the way to shore. I do have a rather ugly photo of the remains that I took to confirm the ID of the goose but thought better of posting it! This is not the first time we have seen an eagle “swimming”. One other time the eagle had latched onto a Dogfish shark that was also too heavy for the bird to carry off. Posted 3 years ago
      1. View NattyOne's profile
        NattyOne
        Lion
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        Has it got the same ratchet method of locking its claws as the Barn Owl. As once they're locked they stay locked, not sure that they can release during flight. Great shots, anyway! Posted 3 years ago
        1. View gary fast's profile
          gary fast
          Lion
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          Very similar mechanism! Posted 3 years ago
          1. View NattyOne's profile
            NattyOne
            Lion
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            Cheers, thanks Posted 3 years ago
  3. View morpheme's profile
    morpheme
    Lion
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    Eagles take quite a risk when they do this.. big birds of prey aren’t generally meant to swim and they have been known to tire and drown. Posted 3 years ago, modified 3 years ago
    1. View gary fast's profile
      gary fast
      Lion
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      A really good point! Shows just how desperate the eagle is to eat something g. Posted 3 years ago
  5. View Calbost Niel's profile
    Calbost Niel
    Lion
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    AMAZING! Posted 3 years ago
    1. View gary fast's profile
      gary fast
      Lion
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      Thanks, always so exciting to see! Posted 3 years ago

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The Bald eagle

The bald eagle is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle, which occupies the same niche as the bald eagle in the Palearctic. Its range includes most of Canada and Alaska, all of the contiguous United States, and northern Mexico.

Info 124 5
Similar species: Diurnal Birds Of Prey
Species identified by gary fast
View gary fast's profile

By gary fast

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Uploaded Jun 21, 2022. Captured in 311 Whaletown Rd, Whaletown, BC V0P 1Z0, Canada.
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