We have a bald eagle nest in the estuary behind our campsite in Campbell River, British Columbia. It’s too far away to photograph (for me), but with a spotting scope, we can watch over the eaglets.
In spring when we arrive here, we see the adults coming and going with sticks. Once I saw and heard one of the adults break a branch off of a neighbouring tree! There was a great CRACK and then the eagle flew across the sky with a huge branch!
Soon enough we’ll start to see a couple of fuzzy balls in the nest and then we get to watch them grow over a couple of months until they become as big as the adults.
Watching them start to exercise their wings in preparation for their first flight is an absolute delight. They open their wings, flap a little, and put them back. Again and again. And then they start flapping and hopping around in the nest. Soon enough they start hopping between branches and going straight up and back down again.
I love the mottled feathers of the juveniles. It takes about 4 to 5 years before they will get their white head and tail feathers.
Around here, the bald eagles are not kings of the jungle, but queens of the rainforest. A fully grown bald eagle has no predators. And yes, the females are larger than the males. The males weigh in at 6-8 pounds and the females are about 9-11 pounds.
A 10 pound bird with a 7 foot wingspan is pretty impressive all on its own, but when there are 15 of them on the beach it is an astonishing sight. The day I made most of these photos, I counted 24 eagles either on the beach, on the nearby ore loading dock, or in the sky just above me. Why so many? Salmon!
This is the salmon capitol of the world, they say, and the eagles seem to agree. It is customary here for the fishermen to throw the fish waste back into the ocean, which is an easy target for the eagles, even though they are perfectly capable of catching their own fish.
It’s quite funny to watch when all the eagles have had their fill and they sit on the nearby ore loading dock and watch as the seagulls bravely take the seconds. But should an eagle come near there is a great flapping of collective wings as the seagulls take their leave! Whenever I hear the flapping I look up and see the incoming eagle.
To make these photos, I used my Canon 7D with a 400mm lens. When the eagles are on the beach, they are fairly close, so I often use my 70-300mm lens, but since it recently broke, I only had my 400mm to work with the last time this photo opportunity came around.
Watching the bald eagles raising their young is just one more reason to love Vancouver Island in summer time!
Anne,
Your landscape photos are so vivid I feel I am at the locations. Travelling with you is very enjoyable.
Thank you so much, I am achieving my goals if I am able to convey the experience of a place 🙂
Very useful content for me. Thanks
Thanks Cole, glad you enjoyed it.
Absolutely amazing photographs Anne!!!! Unfortunately I can’t get to photograph one yet either they r so fast or I am to slow. By the way in my backyard I ‘be seen an osprey that comes to visit and when I get the chance I take my camera and take some photos but when he decides to fly away he caught me on guard, never ready to get that beautiful extension of their wings. Thanks for sharing your stories.
Hi Barbara, I know exactly what you mean! You pretty much have to be there before the birds, which only works if you watch them a lot and start to be able to predict their behaviour. Keep an eye on where that osprey likes to go, and then figure out what lens you need and get your camera set up waiting. It may take a long time waiting, but one day it will all work out 🙂
Magnificent – the birds and the photos!
Thank you Marie! The eagles are incredible to see in the spring when all the juveniles are learning to fly. Quite a sight!
Absolutely spectacular images Anne! Some of the best I have ever seen. Thank you fir sharing them with us. Jean
Many thanks Jean!
Stunning photos Anne!
Thank you so much Steve, much appreciated 🙂
Hi Anna,
Thank jou so much for all jour informatieontsluiting,so amazing
and beatiful fotos.I live in the north of Holland by the Waddenzee.
Also a niche country for making but all different.
IT is verg Nice to take a walk over there.
I Will try to zend you a picture from there.
Thank jou so much for all your informatieontsluiting.
Greetings from Jacobus.
Hi Jacobus. You do live in a beautiful country. A long time ago (about 25 years ago) I took the train from Hoek van Holland to Amsterdam, it was spring, and I remember the amazing fields of tulips. What a sight! I’m glad you are enjoying my blog and photos. Thank you very much for your visit and comments.
These are beautiful! Are these at the spit? I don’t know where the ore loading dock is.
Hi Kathy, Yes, I made these photos right across from the RV park just at the beginning of the spit. The ore loading dock is that old green factory type thing that’s between the boat ramp and the RV park. I’ve only seen a ship there once, so it’s barely used anymore I guess.
Beautiful & amazing photos! Thanks for sharing your stories too! Do you generally use a tripod to get these sharp images?
I love following your amazing journey!
Hi Monica, thank you so much! No, I don’t use a tripod in my wildlife photography because I find that the action is too fast. Especially with birds who are often above me, a tripod doesn’t usually work out. It would be different if I had a really tall tripod and one of those fancy gimbal heads, but I don’t. Instead I use a lens that is light enough for me to hand hold and a really fast shutter speed. My lens is a 400mm f/5.6L. Thanks for your comments!
Thank you Anne for the very interesting well written article and the amazing photos of the eagles.
You are most welcome Larry, glad you enjoyed it!
Absolutely stunning photographs. I saw my first bald eagle in the wild a couple of weeks ago at Goldwater Lake in Prescott, AZ. Unfortunately, I was too slow with the camera. I’ll be going back in hopes of a repeat encounter and have the camera ready just in case.
Hi Ingrid, there’s a good spot in southern Arizona called Whitewater Draw where you can photograph the sandhill cranes. I don’t remember ever seeing a bald eagle down there. But if you ever come to the pacific northwest, you’ll have you’re pick of photo subjects 🙂 Thanks for your comments.