EAGLE INTIMIDATION

There he/she sat, on a bare branch in front of the abandoned eagles's nest

 

EAGLE INTIMIDATION.

There he/she sat, on a bare branch in front of the abandoned eagle’s nest, just around the corner from the active nest, where eggs or chicks are resting quietly inside. We were a group of ten as we floated right under the resting eagle. Most always, when you approach an eagle by boat, it lifts off, to show everyone its elegant departure, light radiating through its white tail feathers. Not this time. It sat there, looking straight down at us and we all gazed straight up at the eagle, awed and maybe made a little uncomfortable by his stare. The chest feathers ruffled up a bit, but no wing movement at all. From there we motored around the bend to take a peek at the active nest. The eagle never took his eyes off us. Not once. We stayed with the new nest maybe 10 minutes or so, seeing the parent bird’s head, hoping to see or hear a chick. Not yet, not this day. As we moved out of the cove and headed uplake, the eagle on the branch left his perch and circled slowly over us until we were out of sight of the nest, his intent quite obvious to all.~B

SPRING SONGBIRD REPORT. There are two bird songs that herald the oncoming spring in the forests of the Jocassee Gorges, the songs of the Louisiana waterthrush and the Black-throated green warbler. I heard them both this week. Listen here for Louisiana waterthrush. Listen here for Black-throated green warbler.

SPRING WATERBIRD MIGRATION REPORT. There are ducks and loons scattered everywhere across the basin of the lower lake.

SPRING WILDFLOWER REPORT. Serviceberry, dogwood, and silverbell adorned with white blooms, Fraser magnolia flowers emerging from enormous buds, wild cherry, a few stray Oconee bells still in bloom, fothergilla in bloom on the south side of the Toxaway River, saxifrage, Solomon seal, and trillium all visible around the edge of the lake.

 

 


 

 

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