Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Breakfast is served

I thought I was going to get bright sun over a low fog today, but the fog didn't show. The day was in the 40's, sunny, and with a light breeze out of the North. Several beginning rowers were out on the lake concentrating on their form. I spotted two of the raccoons that I wrote about the other day right below the bald eagle in todays photo (the black spot in the tree above the bow of the canoe). This eagle stayed ahead of me as I paddled around the bay. By the time I reached the NE corner, I had not seen her for 10 minutes. Just as I paused for a moment, she swooped down on a lone coot (just 10 yards away) and struck it as it tried to get airborne. She wheeled quickly and grabbed the stunned duck lifting it a few feet to the shore where she took a second or two to kill it. Then the eagle flew off with the duck in her talons to a piling that was about 100 yards away. As I paddled off, she was busy defeathering her breakfast.

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