Wandering Aimlessly

 

Golden Eagles

by Phil Burkhouse

 

Ben Franklin wanted the wild turkey to be our national symbol, but he was overruled and our symbol became the bald eagle.  The bald is a gorgeous bird and very identifiable since it is the only raptor that in adult plumage has a vibrant white head and tail.  I must admit they are quite majestic as they cruise over our waterways, but as a hunter they are a piker when compared to the golden eagle.

Bald eagles hunt and fish, but they also steal many fish from the real fishing raptor, the osprey.  As I watch ospreys dive into the water and then wing skyward with a fish, which is often times pilfered from them by a bald eagle, it becomes obvious to me the real fisher is the osprey.  The bald is also a scavenger, and I often see them feasting on roadkills.  On western wanderings it was common to see a bald eagle dining on a dead critter along the highway with a variety of other scavengers such as magpies, crows, jays, ravens, and vultures.

 

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