Get off my LAWN! "Grumpy Old Farts"

[Passinwind]

In the past few years, I have lost four trout to ospreys and one to a bald eagle...they will find a way....

Yep, and then the eagle is gonna go after the osprey to get his lunch money. We could watch it go down at Bonneville Dam with a ringside seat nearly every day in the summer when I was working there. Ospreys will let you get closer than they can poop once they're acclimated, just sayin'.

 

[alaskaleftybass]

Do they ever swoop down on people?

I see crows every day, they live in the park teaming up to distract the squirrels and then stealing their food. I sometimes see eagles in the country. Typically one or two in trees.

There must be good eats in Sitka to support so many.

There are hundreds of eagles in Sitka. No, I've never seen them swoop on anyone in my 67 years in Alaska. But the eagles will get together and swoop over a team of crows or squirrels and pummel their bounty....

Acckk!!! That convocation of eagles could carry off a mob of people in a New York minute (ooOOoo)! Eeek!!!
.

Although some of them have a wingspan of over 6 feet, all I've ever heard of them flying off with is small cats and dogs. Yikes!

I've only seen two (maybe three, IDR for sure) in the CONUS ( in Aridzona and Ohio), so why are there so many of them together in what is, basically, NW Canãda?

The Northwest Coast Natives see no boundaries between Alaska Canada, and Washington. That is all aboriginal sovereign nation country. The reason why there are so many eagles is because as @Passinwind said, there are a lot of salmon in the water and that's one of their favorite foods. A lot of seafood in the water--- you wouldn't believe how much even just a mile out from Sitka.

The fishery food resource is still relatively strong up there, for starters. I've seen around 100 in a day around here (only once though), but the peak season is only a month or three. There's a resident pair within about a mile of my house, we get close flyovers from time to time. But the only time I've seen a mob like in Will's picture was up north of Seattle on the Skagit River, which is a very famous birding location for that very reason.

We get Golden Eagles around here too, you'll see mixed flocks of juveniles occasionally. And then we have Ospreys all over the place, and they like to nest on navigation structures in the river. For many years there was a nest right at my favorite windsurfing launch spot, it was always a blast watching the babies grow up. Osprey will swoop down on your head if provoked, for real. My friends at USGS wore hockey helmets when they had to do work on nav beacon platforms or other places they have telemetry setups installed on out on the river.

Sometimes maybe once a year we have so many eagles that one dies a year from landing on some power grid it's not supposed to be there. One of my friends on the line crew said he was there working on a relay station and it was all fenced in but open that day for repair. An eagle landed on the "hot" area and was blown up INSTANTLY. Within a few seconds nothing but feathers raining from the sky. So those hot zones are always locked.

Haines Bald Eagle Festival. Largest population gathering of eagles in the world.

 

[SoulReflection]

There are hundreds of eagles in Sitka. No, I've never seen them swoop on anyone in my 67 years in Alaska. But the eagles will get together and swoop over a team of crows or squirrels and pummel their bounty....



Although some of them have a wingspan of over 6 feet, all I've ever heard of them flying off with is small cats and dogs. Yikes!



The Northwest Coast Natives see no boundaries between Alaska Canada, and Washington. That is all aboriginal sovereign nation country. The reason why there are so many eagles is because as @Passinwind said, there are a lot of salmon in the water and that's one of their favorite foods. A lot of seafood in the water--- you wouldn't believe how much even just a mile out from Sitka.



Sometimes maybe once a year we have so many eagles that one dies a year from landing on some power grid it's not supposed to be there. One of my friends on the line crew said he was there working on a relay station and it was all fenced in but open that day for repair. An eagle landed on the "hot" area and was blown up INSTANTLY. Within a few seconds nothing but feathers raining from the sky. So those hot zones are always locked.

Haines Bald Eagle Festival. Largest population gathering of eagles in the world.

Hey, Will. I know they share common art, living and hunting styles, but, did they respect each others boundaries and always get along? Always wondered about this.

 

[mikeoso]

The wife of one of my coworkers admits to getting stimulated by the sound of a chainsaw. Rather quirky (aren't we all?), IMO...

My wife admits to finding the smell of WD40 attractive. How cool is that??

 

[Passinwind]

The Northwest Coast Natives see no boundaries between Alaska Canada, and Washington. That is all aboriginal sovereign nation country. The reason why there are so many eagles is because as @Passinwind said, there are a lot of salmon in the water and that's one of their favorite foods.

Mine too. I think Copper River salmon is for dinner, and then off to a jam with some killer ringer musicians at my usual Friday night scene.

 

[mikeoso]

Hey, Will. I know they share common art, living and hunting styles, but, did they respect each others boundaries and always get along? Always wondered about this.

A lot of the baldies winter here, since we're right on the Mississippi. There's a pair that always uses a big oak across the road for a day roost, and the only other eagles allowed near are their kids. However, when there's carrion on the ground, I've seen as many as 20 tearing away at a carcass without any hoohoo.

 

[SoulReflection]

My wife admits to finding the smell of WD40 attractive. How cool is that??

Depends...how much do you put on and what's the result ?

 

[Jeff Scott]

...salmon ..... that's one of their favorite foods.

Strange coincidence!

Take your pick - lox & bagels, or sushi (sake).

 

[mikeoso]

Depends...how much do you put on and what's the result ?

Just a dab behind my ears, and none of your beeswax.

 

[alaskaleftybass]

Depends...how much do you put on and what's the result ?

You baaaad boy!

 

[spiritbass]

My wife admits to finding the smell of WD40 attractive. How cool is that??

 

[SoulReflection]

Just a dab behind my ears, and none of your beeswax.

I was actually inquiring on behalf of a friend. When I called him to let him know, his wife said he left suddenly, saying he was going to Ace Hardware....

 

[beans-on-toast]

My wife admits to finding the smell of WD40 attractive. How cool is that??

Ya but what do the parrots think.

 

[SoulReflection]

Ya but what do the parrots think.

Mike says "get these parrots off of me"...

 

[GwenOnBass]

There's some bird out there who's learned to mimic the sound of a can of WD-40 being sprayed.

 

[beans-on-toast]

 

[GwenOnBass]

 

[mikeoso]

View attachment 3432262​

Think you have no gin.

 

[mikeoso]

Ya but what do the parrots think.

Parrots think it tastes icky, and nothing else matters in the least.

 

[GwenOnBass]

Happy Saturday.

Headed to the growers' market to score some local produce. And it's pretty well known Carol Kay worked with Frank and believe she said something to the effect of "shut up and play your guitar."