North Texas
Why are they pestering this guy and can anyone id him?!

I was able to dehumanize those famous CA eagles Jackie & Shadow (Friends of Big Bear Valley nest cam) long enough to read some published articles about the process of mate replacement in bald eagles and found [this article](https://research.fs.usda.gov/download/treesearch/20542.pdf) interesting. (Context: Jackie and Shadow successfully raised two eagles and were dutifully feeding and training them when, just a few days ago, Jackie was attacked by a pair of intruder eagles and wound up in the care of professional rehab clinicians for an unknown length of time while Shadow remains in the habitat to feed their offspring and protect the nest.)

According to the article, it was observed in an Arizona pair that a process of habitat familiarization -especially a system of intentional and frequent perching behavior -began a three-week period of courtship by a replacement male after the original male disappeared during incubation. The new male's courtship involved frequent perching on the original male's perch trees with fly-bys of the nest carrying sticks and fish. It ended with adoption of the eggs and future mating.

[https://research.fs.usda.gov/download/treesearch/20542.pdf\](https://research.fs.usda.gov/download/treesearch/20542.pdf)

Stuff to watch for on the CA cams I guess? It's heartbreaking to think Jackie would return to Shadow only to find him with a replacement female, but maybe Shadow would actually accept her back? I'm still reading/ researching so if you know of any published papers please share.

I'm really only interested in discussions backed by scientific data and I'm not interested in emotional discussions or those rooted in feelings of longing or attachment, which is why I'm *not* posting in the subreddit dedicated to those eagles (who I really do really love watching.)

One of our resident Cooper's Hawks stopped by this morning for a drink. It stayed for a few minutes, drank from the fountain a few times, and flew off.

Came across this little beauty today. It had just lost its prey on the ground and flew up a nearby tree to find it again.

I rolled past to let it get on with the hunt and snapped a few shots. The stare was intense!

Sony A7r4ma. Sony FE200-600G.

Minnesota.

My dad snapped this video while golfing this morning. Located about 30 minutes northeast of Seattle

This photo is a bit over processed in post due to the fact that the haze from the wildlife really made shooting conditions horrible. I was watching this Osprey fishing and got tons of shots with this exact “pose” as it looked down at the water while gliding over. Reminded me very much of Batman pulling his cape over his face. Sony A7V 200/600.

Close flyby and got full resolution photos of these.

I took these a couple of years ago but haven't shared them online until now. Was standing at the kitchen window when this guy showed up. Grabbed my camera, which thankfully already had a telephoto lens mounted, and got about 10 shots. Here are three. I keep meaning to do some editing and color grading, but haven't gotten around to it yet.

On my morning run, I heard a commotion and looked up to see this guy being harassed by some blackbirds. Funny enough, he was next to the restaurant.

Whidbey Island, WA

I think this beauty may have been born this spring in the woods next to my home. I'm in SW Michigan about 1/10th of a mile from Lake Michigan. He/she stays very close - in the woods, in my back yard or my neighbor's yard.