Rickubis Bird Page #2c: Eagles! page 3! Page 1 , Page 2 , Page 4
This page was born 02/14/2024 (split from a page born 09/17/2019.).  Rickubis designed it.  (such as it is.) Last update: 4/22/2024
Images and contents on this page copyright ©2002-2024 Richard M. Dashnau 

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Welcome to Brazos Bend State Park. That's me on the trail at Fiorenza Park watching an Eagle 6/3/2023. I was just a child when the number of Eagle nests in the U.S. was only 417...in the lower 48 states. 
I never expected to see Bald Eagles at all where I live and play, but here they are!  I'm sharing many of my pictures and videos of Eagles here on my Eagle Pages.  

12/14/2023 -  It's Eagle Season! More Eagles visit this area through Fall and Winter. I saw an Eagle at BBSP on 10/29/2023 flying high over 40 Acre Lake,
and later over Pilant Lake. At Fiorenza park on 11/11/2023 one flew over me, then appeared on the usual perch on the electrical tower. I did get some images, but  
only from far away.  Then I saw Eagles on 12/07/2023, 12/09/2023, and 12/10/2023!  So I had to say something about it.    
    From the Warner Bros. short, "Rabbit Fire"  (clip with sound)
On, 12/07/2023 I was at Scobee Field, which is set up for flying model airplanes.  I was in one of the open public spaces, throwing boomerangs. I've been going there
because there's so much open space for the boomerangs to fly(11/15/2023). When I walked back towards my car I noticed two large birds across the field. Vultures
 frequently fly over and around Scobee Field. But the two birds I noticed were Eagles! Two landed in a tree way outWest, but one had flown off before I get cross the
road and get to the fence. Shooting photos from so far away through the hot air near the ground was difficult but I tried because I'd never expected to see
Bald Eagles there. The electrical tower at Fiorenza Park where I've often seen Eagles is almost 4 miles East of where I saw the Eagles today. When the Eagle took
off, I captured some video, and put that into the video linked here. The two images of the eagle are frames from the video.
   

On, 12/09/2023 I saw an Eagle on the Eagles' favorite electrical tower at Fiorenza Park. I parked and took the 20-minute walk to get near the tower.  Since it was cloudy, I
was able to get West of the Eagle and see it without being blinded by the morning sun. So I got pictures from the side opposite than I usually do.  I like the way some of
the images turned out,  especially when the sun broke through and lit up the Eagle just a little bit.  I was dismissed when the Eagle flew off to the West.
   

   

On, 12/10/2023 I was at Brazos Bend State Park and walking back to the 40 Acre Lake parking lot. I was walking South on the East Loop of the trail when I saw a bird
flying over 40 Acre Lake. It was pretty high, and I didn't think it was one of the many Vultures that were taking off as the air got warmer. I'm pretty sure it was an Eagle,
but since it didn't have a white head and tail, I have slight doubts. I'm guessing it was a juvenile Eagle. 
   

Just a few minutes later, I was on the South loop of the 40 Acre Lake trail, in the backround area shown in the first picture above.  I saw an adult Bald Eagle flying far
above, and it went North, towards Pilant Lake. I looked down at the trees, and then back up and saw another adult Eagle above me, much closer than the other adult that
had just gone to Pilant Lake. 
   

It circled right over me, and then I lost it against the Sun. I had to hurry away to do a shift at the Nature Center.
   

On 07/01/2023 I was back at Fiorenza park. The Eagle was on the high-tension tower. Since this is July, I thouht it worth noting that this eagle (and
possibly an entire family of them) had not left Texas for the summer. I didn't stay for hours this time...because the Eagle flew off. 
   

While watching the Eagle thorugh the camera and changing modes, I try to see what the Eagle is doing. If it appears to be watching something, I'll turn to scan the area to
try to pick up what the Eagle is looking at. If the camera is on a tripod (I'm using one these days), I might leave video recording in case I miss something. In first two images
below show the Eagle turning, then stretching its neck to look at something. It took off while I looked for the object of its scrutiny-so I didn't see it take off. I tried to catch
 images and video as the Eagle circled around, but didn't do well. (Some day I'll get the hang of quick-focus against the sky.) I did get one of the Eagle flying off, though.
   

After the Eagle flew off, I'd picked up the tripod, turned around and started walking back, when I noticed something in tree just beyond the bend of the trail. This was just
5 minutes after the Eagle had gone.  I looked "raptorish", and when I glassed it with binoculars, I saw it was an Osprey!  I took a few quick shots, then walked under the
tree at the bend to get a few more before the Osprey took off.
   

So...two Sea Eagles in one day...within minutes of each other! Why "sea eagles"?  Bald Eagles are aka Haliaeetus leucocephalus (sea eagle with a white head) while
Ospreys are aka Pandion haliaetus (Pandion's sea eagle). Don't ask me about the extra (or missing) "e".  I'm lucky enough to see an Osprey somewhere in
Fiorenza Park most times I visit. 
  

On 06/07/2023 I was back at Fiorenza park. The Eagle was on the high-tension tower and I spent 2 more hours near it. This may seem like a long span
to wait  for something  to happen, but I didn't really notice the passage of time.  Any time the Eagle moved, I either shot a burst of photos, or a short video clip. This time I
 didn't shoot any "establishing" images to show the surroundings, since I'd just done that  4 days before.  More shots of the Eagle below. 
   

This time, the Eagle spread its wings in a sunbathing posture. I've seen other birds do this--especially large ones, such as Herons. I've read that this odd position can
allow the  underside of the wings to dry and/or allow the bird to remove parasites.
   

The other images just show the Eagle turning its head at various angles, contrasted against the sky; and apparently looking down on me again.  Beautiful!
   

On 06/03/2023 I went to Fiorenza park. When I saw an Eagle on the high-tension tower near the ramp, I parked on that side of the park and went over
to watch it. I spent 2 hours near the Eagle. It sounds like a long span to wait for something to happen, but I didn't really notice the passage of time.  Any time the Eagle
moved, I either shot a burst of photos, or a short video clip. As the morning passed, the changed position of the Sun allowed for some variety.  The images below show
how I could spot the Eagle from the slope of the ramp. The last one shows the tower from the spot on the trail where I stand when I shoot images.
   

Those who visit here often, may question my repeated sharing of pictures showing the tower; but each day is a new adventure, and sometimes I like to share the 
experience along with the images. The second and third picture below look the same, but inspect the eye. I think that I captured the Eagle blinking with its third eyelid; 
or nictitating membrane. No matter how much I admire Bald Eagles, this one just looked down on me.
   

The other images just show the Eagle in the morning sun, contrasted against the sky.  Beautiful!
   

05/16/2023  An Eagle was on the favored spot on top of the high-tension tower at Fiorenza Park. I waited to see if I could catch some action shots.  
The Eagle looked out across the water. From that height, it could watch over everything.    I figured that almost everything that the Eagle saw swimming under the water,
floating in it, or even flying above the surface--was potential prey for the Eagle.  I thought that the Eagle was an imposing figure-an apex predator atop the tower; looking
down upon  its domain.
   

And then, this happened.  At first, the Eagle seemed a bit perplexed.  The Eagle tried to go back to looking majestic. But, the visitor-a Northern Mockingbird 
(Mimus polyglottos)-wasn't going to allow that.  The distance between me and the birds, along with the noise from the passing traffic, made recording of the birds' voices
 impossible for me.  There is video that goes with all these images, at this link.
   

I've noticed that although a Mockingbird will dive and swoop aggressively, turning and facing it will usually cause it to back off.  We can see this when the Eagle turned to
 face the smaller bird.  I couldn't believe that the Mockinbird was so persistent with the Eagle.  I didn't think that it had a nest near the Eagle's perch.  For whatever reason,
the Mockingbird decided to fly all the way up there to harass the Eagle.
   

During the hour that I watched the Eagle, the Mockingbird left the top of the tower occasionally, but would return after about 15 minutes.  The shadows on the Eagle show
that the Mockingbird was approaching from the the direction of the Sun.  But, the Eagle was also facing the other way, so the Mockingbird might have not have been using
 the Sun, but just attacking from behind the Eagle.   The Eagle's gape display is interesting.   The Mockingbird wasn't intimidated by it very much.  I couldn't tell if the Eagle
 was calling. 
    

 I've put almost all of the interaction between the two birds together into this video because I enjoyed watching it happen. The Mockingbird appeared to be fighting the
wind when it approached the Eagle.   While filming, I could occasionally hear the Mockingbird's "warning" call, but it wasn't captured well in the video. While I admire the
audacity of the Mockingbird, I don't  know what it had at stake. Aside from flying away from the minor annoyance, the powerful Eagle really couldn't  do anything to deal
with the Mockingbird, unless it managed to snatch it with its beak--which was unlikely.  It wasn't trying to do that.  With the apparent wind blowing up there, if the Eagle
tried its own threat display (with open wings) it might have gotten blown off the tower.  I had to leave before there was any resolution to this situation (if one was possible).
I know this spot popular with the Eagles; especially over the last few weeks (many examples on this page). I've never noticed any conflict with a Mockingbird there before.  

On 04/15/2023 I was at Fiorenza Park North at 9:30am. Bald Eagle was perched on a favored spot on the high-tension tower at the South edge of the
park.  The Eagle seemed to be watching the retainment pond, so I waited to see if it would hunt.  Fish started appearing at the surface, and birds always moved around.
The Eagle teased potential movement by pooping, then turning around. Both of these can show preparation to fly. But, the Eagle just watched....

   

 ...until it TOOK OFF and hunted!  The event took a few seconds. I frantically shot video and the images below are frames from the edited video clip at this link.  I'd made the
 choice to shoot 1080p video at 120fps, and everything worked right!  Had plenty of good frames to work with. I could crop quite a bit, and could slow the video 6 times and
still maintain smooth movement.  The results look pretty good in the video.
The Eagle zoomed down towards the water, with wings partially open. I think this allows for the increased speed, while the same speed allows lift from the lessened air
 surface of the folded wings. It extended its legs, then began  to bank.
    
The eagle banked sharply, fully spreading its wings and decelerating.   While lowering air speed, it descended and extended its talons.
   

Without pause, the Eagle dipped its talons into the water and grabbed a fish.  It moved its wings forward to begin flapping, and started to turn.
   

The eagle turned right, but didn't try to gain altitude. Instead of returning to the top of the power line tower, the Eagle landed on the small island nearby. Later, it took off and
flew West. I couldn't tell if it was carrying the fish.
   

On 03/19/2023 A cold front had passed through recently. That morning, the thermometer in my car showed 47°F. I didn't bother trying to record  the air temperature on the
 trail because I was trying a new piece of equipment that I thought would give me related data.  I can say that it felt REALLY cold out there.
My test subject was an alligator den at 40 Acre Lake that I've been monitoring for months since last fall (and even a few months in 2020!).  I took the some images below
 with my phone, and with the new device.  I was trying out a FLIR One Pro thermal camera which connects to the USB-C port on my phone. It has its own optical camera,
 along with the thermal imager. The imager works off of surface temperatures,  so air temperature will not register. In the images looking down at the den opening the
device snagged a 35.8°F  and a 57.6°F high and low. The  imager is always sampling, so these points can fluctuate as I move the camera around. The 35.8°F isn't really a
 surprise-I said it was cold.   But look at the reading  off the water in the den!  It was 21.8 degrees warmer in the den than the lowest measured spot! If you want to see more
about this den, go to my page here. I'm including this to provide some background for the Eagle sighting below.
    

I tried to use the phone that is part of my camera, and after that the FLIR stopped working. I probably just needed to restart the camera, but that morning 
too much was going on.  For one thing, while I was holding my phone in one hand, and the FLIR in the other, a Bald Eagle flew right over me. It landed tree off 
yonder in West Pilant Lake. The four pictures below show where it landed. In the first picture, it's that brown dot with a white dot on top in the center.
    


On 03/04/2023 I was on my way to Fiorenza Park when I noticed a Bald Eagle was perched on one of the high-tension towers.  I pulled over on the street North of the
park, then walked over to the tower, where I watched the Eagle for a while, hoping to see it take off. I finally decided to leave, and had taken about 10 steps when I saw the Eagle descending
 towards the water off to my left (moving West).  I lost it among the cover and birds on the water. Dang it.  
   

Even though it's not doing anything except watching over the water-and the prey in it and on it-here are more pictures; because it's still an awesome Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus).
   

If you'd like to know more about the park follow these links:

Brazos Bend State Park   The main page.

Brazos Bend State Park Volunteer's Page  The volunteer's main page.
 

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