2025 Edition

Despite being ‘eagle-eyed’, their fishing attempts often fail – as was the case here. While freshly caught fish make up a large part of the bald eagle’s diet, they also prey on ducks, rodents and other small animals, alive and dead. Mature bald eagles are easily identified by their white head feathers; until they are three or four years old, young bald eagles have brown head feathers and are sometimes mistaken for golden eagles. Not that long ago, such a scene was a rare sight. Poaching, loss of natural habitat, and the widespread use of pesticides like DDT had brought the bald eagle to the brink of extinction (fewer than 200 individuals in the lower 48 states). Fortunately, rigorous conservation efforts, including the banning of DDT in 1972 and the placing of the bird under the protection of the US Endangered Species Act, stopped the rapid decline in populations. Wild eagles were trapped in Alaska and released in prime eagle territories suitable for their survival and reproduction, and their population began to increase again.  In 2007, the eagle was officially removed from the endangered species list in a resounding success for wildlife conservation.

24-105 mm f/4 Lens - 1/8000 sec at f/13 ISO 5000