Eagle Skirmishes
An eagle enjoying a feast is not often left alone for too long in Brackendale. Finished spawning, the salmon drift downriver listlessly and eventually die naturally or with the assistance of the scavengers along the rivers. The effort is in pulling the fish out of the water. When that is done, competition often arrives to stake a claim. Skirmishes, jousting and all out fights can breakout before one eagle is chased off.
This eagle was unchallenged as we floated past but it kept its head on a swivel wary of potential thieves.
In another spot, there were a lot of fish along the rocks and a lot of eagles vying for them.
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Occasionally, as in the photograph below, an equilibrium of sorts will be found where a few eagles will take turns on a fish with little aggression.
However, one eagle soon came screaming in and upset the delicate balance.
There are many gulls that wait for opportunities to grab bits out of the water. When eagles aren’t around, they have similar battles over prime spots.
Sharing this post is welcomed - but please do not use individual images without permission from Christopher Martin in advance.
Bald Eagles in Brackendale
Canon 5DIII + 500mm f/4 lens and 1.4X extender: 1/1000 of a second at f/6.3 on ISO 3200
I was in Brackendale, just north of Squamish, for a couple of days in December. Every year thousands of Bald Eagles congregate in this area along the banks of the Squamish River. There are three separate salmon spawning runs that overlap between November and February that result in dead and dying salmon littering the rocky shoreline. The easy dining is a draw for eagles, seagulls as well as the occasional otter and seal (which in turn are quite the draw for photographers as it turns out!) I was there for the Bald Eagles and was not disappointed in any way. The first day was spent along the berm, that serves as a main viewing point, a bit further upriver in an eddy where a particularly cool eagle was hanging out.
Canon 5DIII + 500mm f/4 lens and 1.4X extender: 1/1000 of a second at f/6.3 on ISO 3200
I will do a separate post from the second day when the snow fell and I was out on a birdwatching float down the river. For now, these images are from the first day where the overcast skies allowed for open shadows and allowed the texture and detail in the eagle plumage to be seen. It was pretty dark at times as you can tell by the ISO settings I was using but it was a great day filled with eagles coming and going.
Canon 5DIII + 500mm f/4 lens and 1.4X extender: 1/1000 of a second at f/5.6 on ISO 4000
There are so many fish that serious fights appear to be rare but eagles are opportunistic so there are still skirmishes where one will try to chase off another who has already gone through the effort of retrieving a salmon out of the water.
Canon 5DIII + 500mm f/4 lens and 1.4X extender: 1/1000 of a second at f/6.3 on ISO 4000
Others preferred a little more distance from their brethren. This eagle hung out on a perch in the middle of a pond-like eddy off the river. At one point it called out but it didn’t fly over to the scattered groups of eagles in the trees across the water nor did any of them come over to visit.
Canon 5DIII + 500mm f/4 lens: 1/800 of a second at f/4.5 on ISO 1600
Canon 5DIII + 500mm f/4 lens: 1/1000 of a second at f/6.3 on ISO 2000
It splashed around in the shallow water for a while, stopping to snack for a minute, but seemed to return to this stick as its preferred resting spot.
Canon 5DIII + 500mm f/4 lens: 1/1600 of a second at f/4 on ISO 1600
Canon 5DIII + 500mm f/4 lens: 1/1600 of a second at f/4 on ISO 1000
Canon 5DIII + 500mm f/4 lens: 1/2000 of a second at f/4 on ISO 800
Canon 5DIII + 500mm f/4 lens: 1/2000 of a second at f/4 on ISO 1600
I never tired of watching these eagles flying. I think they are one of the most beautiful birds to watch in flight. It was a great day on BC’s west coast.
Canon 5DIII + 500mm f/4 lens and 1.4X extender: 1/1000 of a second at f/6.3 on ISO 3200
Canon 5DIII + 500mm f/4 lens: 1/1000 of a second at f/4 on ISO 3200
Sharing this post is welcomed - but please do not use individual images without permission from Christopher Martin in advance.
Merry Christmas!
Winter Flight – A Bald eagle flies under falling snow in Brackendale, B.C. on December 20th, 2013
December has been a busy end to a busy year. It is nice to have a few days over Christmas to spend time at home with my family. I hope you are able to do the things that make for a great holiday for you and yours. Merry Christmas!
