"LOVE ACTUALLY"

Bald Eagles (Adults) - 7 Photos

Bald Eagles apparently seek out a mate or re-confirm their commitment to each other around this time of the year. They mate for life.

I was fortunate to catch up with this pair after they had successfully chased off a third adult. Having said "fortunate", it did entail tramping through some deep snow, crossing a creek and then re-crossing the creek as they moved to a better tree.

I followed the chattering to the "pairing" tree where they stayed for over twenty-five minutes. The male (the smaller bird) was in the higher branch with the female (the larger bird) taking the lower perch. It was Romeo and Juliet but with Romeo in the balcony and Juliet in the "courtyard". The female constantly was on watch looking up and around and keeping a close watch on the skies.

Twenty minutes in, they turned and looked at each other and began an intense eagle conversation which lasted 10 minutes. As you can see from the photos, there was a great deal of eye contact and each eagle, "crowing" upwards. At the end, the male flew off first (maybe to seek out a duck dinner to complete the evening) and the female shortly thereafter.

It was a privilege to have a window into such an intimate moment in the lives of two large birds of prey. And will be forever grateful to be granted such an opportunity.

PHOTO #1

Bald Eagle (American) - Adults"FOREVER TOGETHER"

PHOTO #2

Bald Eagle (American) - Adults"A PAIR FOR LIFE"

PHOTO #3

Bald Eagle (American) - Adult"ONE OF TWO"

PHOTO #4

Bald Eagle (American) - Adults"LOVE ACTUALLY"

PHOTO #5

Bald Eagle (American) - Adults"RE-AFFIRMING OUR VOWS"

PHOTO #6

Bald Eagle (American) - Adults"SHOUT IT FROM THE TREE TOPS"

PHOTO #7

Bald Eagle (American) - Adults"LEAVING FOR NOW"