Today, expecting to encounter hoards of Snow Geese, my partner and I drove up to the Skagit Valley to the Wiley Slough. When we arrived, there were only a handful of Snow Geese, mostly huddled in small bunches amongst puddles in fallow fields. What we encountered instead was a wide array of birds of prey, lots of Herons, a few other water birds, and some hunters in a canoe.
For months, I’ve been waiting for a chance to get a few decent photos of a Bald Eagle, admittedly mostly so I could write this blog post about bald eagle rehabilitation. Well, instead of just one photo, I managed hundreds. And while my photography skills are still mediocre, I was glad to capture even a portion of the dozen or so Bald Eagles we saw in action today.
A Childhood Perception
When I was a kid, I remember distinctly being gathered with the whole school in the auditorium (I was probably in 3rd or 4th grade) and hearing from experts who spoke dramatically about the endangerment of Bald Eagles — the symbol of America — and why it was a big deal. I remember thinking the birds (based on photos) were terrifying, but feeling so sad about the concept of endangerment in general.
I grew up in California, so the long-term effects of DDT were not quite a distant memory at this point, and lead bullets were causing huge problems, not only for Bald Eagles, but for California Condors, a problem that continued well into my twenties, when many environmental groups worked to ban them once and for all (which didn’t happen until 2007, and is still not entirely under control). So, when I heard that the Eagles were “endangered,” my childhood mind conflated that with “extinct”. Unfortunately for me, that misconception stayed with me for… a long time.
An Embarrassing Awakening to Bald Eagle Rehabilitation
Jump ahead to my move to the Pacific Northwest in 2009 (you can probably see where this is going). My first year in Portland, I was a Team Leader for a group of environmental educators with an AmeriCorps program. The folks on my team worked at school districts, city governments in the Portland area, and wildlife refuges. We had monthly gatherings as a team (13 of us), many of which were held at those sites and included tours, educational and interpretive programming, etc.
One of these team meetings was at the Tualatin River National Wildlife Refuge, where one of the team members was working as an interpretive guide. We walked as a group, and she pointed out plants, spoke of the history of the area, etc. We were chatting and enjoying each others’ company, when we saw a HUGE Bald Eagle soaring over the water in search of a fish treat.
“OH MY GOD!!!!” I exclaimed, probably more excited than I’ve ever been. “Is that a BALD EAGLE!?!?” I asked, eyes wide open, looking around frantically at my team members. They all looked at me with expressions ranging from confusion to utter bewilderment. Many of them nodded, and the woman who worked there smiled at me kindly. “They’re kind of all over the place around here. We’re lucky enough to have nests here pretty often too.” My cheeks flushed bright red as I realized I had likely just lost a whole lot of cred with this group of environmental professionals.
Recovery and Awe
I decided to own up, and told them the story about why I was so excited — that in my mind, Bald Eagles were extinct. They laughed and nodded, and thanks to the excellent company I was in, we dove into a fascinating conversation about the success of the Bald Eagle rehabilitation programs in the 80s and 90s, and how regulations and habitat protections helped eliminate some of the most brutal threats to the populations, etc.
After about 20 minutes of discussion, the Eagle that was circling the river took a sharp dive straight into the water, and arose with an absolutely huge fish in its beak. It soared low across the water, ensuring a good grip on the fish, and flew away. Thankfully, I was not the only one who was pretty impressed with witnessing that particular occurrence.
Thanks to my unusual introduction to these birds, they are close to my heart. The fact that we have them “all over the place” thanks to bald eagle rehabilitation programs, as my colleague pointed out, gives me great joy. I’m hoping my photography skills improve and someday I capture this regal creature appropriately. For now, here are a few highlights from the day.
