Field Notes Update

Some Bald Eagles Like Duck /  by Todd Henson

Most often I see bald eagles in this area eating fish, either that they’ve caught or stolen from another bird. But eagles are opportunistic and will feed on many things besides fish.

The bald eagle ruffled its feathers just after landing on the dead tree.

One morning while hiking a local wildlife refuge we saw an eagle fly from its massive nest and head out over the bay. We thought it was going fishing, but when we kept watching as it got further and further away we saw it begin to dip down towards the water then back up into the air again, and it did this several times. That’s not how they typically fish. But we noticed small dark spots moving around on the water just below the eagle, too small to make out but we assumed some species of duck. It was only when the bald eagle flew back to a tree in the refuge that we noticed it had, indeed, caught a duck as its next meal.

After ruffling its feather the bald eagle stretched out its wings.

The tree was at a bit of a distance so I cropped these images fairly aggressively to give you a better view of the bald eagle and the duck it caught. The first few images show the eagle shortly after it landed on the dead tree, ruffled its feathers, and then began eating.

Now the bald eagle was ready to begin eating the duck it had just caught from the surface of the water.

Eventually, it had eaten enough and would soon take flight. How did I know it was just about to take flight? As gross as this may seem, they often defecate just before lifting off, and sure enough, about 10 seconds after lightening its load it stretched out its wings and took flight. If you want to photograph eagles or other large birds as they take flight then watch for these signs. They won’t always do it, but when they do it’s often followed by flight.

Pre-flight preparation, lightening the load (1 of 3)

Pre-flight preparation, lightening the load (2 of 3)

Pre-flight preparation, lightening the load (3 of 3). Watch out below!

The bald eagle positions itself for taking flight. I love how they look!

The bald eagle opens its wings, ready to take flight.

I love how bald eagles look as they take flight, so very majestic and powerful. Once the eagle has left the tree you can get a better view of the duck, or at least its legs. I don’t know exactly what species it was. Also, click on the last photo to see a bigger view and look closely at the eagle’s eye. I happened to photograph it while it had its nictitating membrane closed over the eye. That’s why it looks cloudy instead of that bold yellow and black you’ll see when the eyelids are fully open.

The bald eagle takes flight, pushing itself off the tree while still clasping the dead duck.

Stretching out its powerful wings the bald eagle flies away from the tree, duck securely clasped in its talons.

Flying away from the tree the bald eagle stretches out its wings and begins to angle itself back towards its nest. Notice both the legs of the duck dangling from its talons and also the cloudy look to its eyes because of the closed nictitating membrane.

In a future post I hope to share some photos of this eagle’s massive nest, so large and deep you can’t always tell when there’s an eagle in the nest.

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Osprey Love Fish /  by Todd Henson

An osprey perches in a tree and eats a fish it recently caught.

One sign of spring in this area is the arrival of osprey from further south. They migrate to this area to build nests and raise their next generation. And raising the next generation requires food, lots of it. And what food do osprey eat? Fish! That’s why they’re also known as fish hawks.

Here an osprey is perches in a tree ripping off flesh from a fish it recently caught.

An example of an osprey closing its nictitating membrane over its eye while eating a fish in a tree. Click here to learn more about nictitating membranes.

I have sometimes been lucky enough to find an osprey atop a tree eating a fish it had just caught in the nearby river or bay. Often they will land to eat part of the fish and then take the rest back to the nest for their mate and/or young.

An osprey takes flight from a tree it had recently perched in. Notice it still has the remains of a fish in one talon.

An osprey lifts off from a tree.

An osprey, which has recently been perched in a tree eating the fish now in its talons, has taken flight, perhaps making its way back to a nest or mate where it will deliver the remains of the fish.

Even more special are the times we get to watch an osprey catch a fish. They are unique among the fish-eating raptors in that they hover above the water, watching the fish below the surface, and will then dive into the water, talons down. If the fish is close enough to the surface they may only submerge their talons and legs to catch the fish. But if the fish is a little deeper they will sometimes almost completely submerge themselves and then struggle to get out of the water and back into the air. I’ve read that osprey feathers are not water-proof, only water-resistant, so they do need to be careful not to remain in the water too long or they’ll drown, something that can happen if they try to catch a fish that’s too heavy for them.

An osprey hovers in the air holding a fish in one talon. Out of view below is the osprey’s mate, sitting in a tree. The osprey in flight was squawking up a storm. It didn’t seem able to figure out what to do until its mate flew away from the tree giving this one a place to land. Then its mate returned to the tree. Interesting behavior.

Here an osprey with a fish in a talon dives down towards a tree where its mate had recently been perched. It landed and then its mate returned to the perch.

Photographing an osprey catching a fish can be hit or miss. You never know exactly where they will fish or when. So it requires some patience. If you’re lucky they’ll go fishing near the shore so you can get some reasonably close views, but quite often they’re out a ways, which doesn’t make for very good photographs. The fishing shots shown here required me to crop in to show you more of the osprey. Some are not good photos but I wanted to show how they can almost disappear under the water and then come up with a fish. Interestingly, they seem to always catch fish such that they fly with the fish’s head facing forward (or at least the tail facing backward if they’ve already eaten the head).

An osprey dives under the water for a fish. You can just see the dark tips of its wings. This is a greatly cropped image and I did lose focus on the bird.

The osprey lifts itself out of the water with a fish hooked in its talons. Sometimes these birds really have to work hard to gain any elevation when they catch a heavy fish. This is a greatly cropped image and I did lose focus on the bird.

I hope you enjoy some of these views of osprey and their fish. If I’m lucky perhaps I’ll have more photos to share with you this season.

This osprey had just caught the fish and is now flying off to eat it or take it back to its nest.

An osprey flying away from me, hanging low over the water after just having caught a fish.

The osprey continues gaining elevation as it flies over the water with a fish.

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American Woodcock Chicks /  by Todd Henson

Most of the time I spend pursuing wildlife photography in the fairly populated area of Northern Virginia is spent photographing the same species’, each time trying to create better photographs than I have before. But every once in a great while I stumble across something new, something I’ve never seen before and may never see again. And I absolutely love those times. There is a small amount of stress to them in that I want to try to create the best photos I can, knowing I may never see this species again. But for the most part I get lost in the moment and just react, working to reduce my shaking, which is a combination of essential tremors and excitement.

In the final week of March of 2022 I spent one late afternoon hiking Occoquan Bay National Wildlife Refuge, one of my go-to locations. I don’t often get the chance to visit in the afternoon during a weekday since I’m typically working and they close at 5 pm through the end of March, but I had the day off for other things so decided to spend the afternoon at the refuge.

This time of year we have nesting osprey and bald eagles and those are the species that often draw photographers. But there’s so much more to see, at least if you’re lucky. On this particular occasion I stumbled upon a family of American woodcock. And when I say stumble, that’s exactly what I mean.

First view of a group of three American woodcock chicks hiding right in plain view, beaks to the ground.

I was hiking down a long, mostly straight trail, which is actually a dirt road. I’d passed by the open water and marshy areas and was headed into the forested area. I try to keep my eyes peeled in all directions when walking alone, but of course, it’s never possible to see all directions, and apparently my blind spot at that moment was right in front of my feet. I looked down and noticed a group of birds right at my feet, literally a couple feet away, and I reacted by wavering in place, trying not to step down on them, stumbling back just a bit. And that movement was enough to scare the single adult American woodcock into the woods right at the edge of the trail. But the three small chicks stayed right where they were, sitting on the ground, beaks resting on the dirt, seemingly frozen in place.

Walking around the young woodcocks, trying to move slowly enough not to scare them away.

I took several slow steps backward to give them some space and released my camera from the tripod, kneeled down to the ground, then lay down on my stomach. They still didn’t move so I began photographing. I slowly moved around them, photographing from various angles, and the young chicks never moved, just watched me as I moved. They remained frozen even when I moved behind a couple of them such that they could no longer see me.

A ground-level view of the three American woodcock chicks, resting on the edge of the trail.

Finally, when I had a good view I lay on my stomach with my arms and the camera stretched out in front of me, camera resting on my hand and my hand on the ground. I kept my head lowered so the rim of my hat almost rested on the camera, trying to keep my profile as small as possible. I watched and waited and hoped the mother would return from the woods. I really wanted to photograph her with the chicks, and I so wish I’d seen them sooner so I could have photographed them all together.

A side and rear view of the young American woodcock chicks.

I could hear the mother occasionally in the brush, very close by, but she never returned. Instead, one by one the chicks stood up on wobbly legs. I don’t know if their legs were wobbly because they were weak, being so young, or if it were due to fear, or perhaps if that’s simply how they move. As they stood they bobbed up and down, then slowly moved one step at a time towards the trees, me snapping photographs the whole time. They were such beautiful little birds with those long beaks, the large expressive human-looking eyes, and the puffy feathers so common on young chicks.

Every so slowly and one by one the young American woodcock chicks stand up, very wobbly, bobbing up and down.

The American woodcock chicks begin walking into the green, towards the trees where their mother waits for them.

Some of their beaks had bits of dirt on them, and I later learned they often feed by sticking their long beaks into moist ground looking for worms, larvae and other invertebrates. They resemble many species of shorebirds but instead live in forests in the eastern parts of North America. They are rarely seen, spending most time on the forest floor or in fields or meadows, blending in almost perfectly with their surroundings. And, as I discovered, they are able to remain absolutely still until the last moment when they can dart away, or at least the adults do.

I was glad when they moved into the grass as I loved how the color change helped them stand out.

I like how in this photo we can see the small leg of the left-most American woodcock chick as it walks into the grass.

It seems I was extraordinarily fortunate to find an adult with chicks. The young woodcocks grow quickly and are only with their mother for several weeks after leaving the nest, which is usually hidden in leaves under brush or thickets. I happened to find them during this short time, and I can’t express just how happy I am that I did. This is certainly up there in my ranking of favorite wildlife moments, one I won’t soon forget. And though I don’t expect to see them again, I guarantee I’ll keep my eyes open each time I walk down that path, hoping against hope that just maybe they’ll still be around and will have the patience to let me photograph them again.

One final look at the last American woodcock chick to disappear into the brush. I won’t soon forget it.

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