Bald Eagle Intercepts The Approach Vector

Title

Bald Eagle Intercepts The Approach Vector

Artist

Tony Hake

Medium

Photograph - Photograph

Description

Oh my! What a fantastic creature and a pretty darned cool image of one as it banked hard to setup for a landing. This past weekend was an absolute treat as two dozen bald eagles descended on a suburban pond northeast of Denver, Colorado. It was a rare occurrence but likely occurred due to the thawing of the pond being timed with the fish in it being close to the surface. They were tiny fish, not much more than a snack for this big raptor, but there were enough that eagle activity was insane. It was an absolute treat and one that I will remember for a long time. Bald eagles have been a spiritual symbol of Native Americans for hundreds of years. There were variations between tribes as to the eagles' symbolism but for most it generally represented bravery, wisdom, strength and courage. It was believed that the eagles carried prayers to the Great Spirit. Analysis indicates that Bald Eagle populations were as high as 500,000 in the lower 48 states before the arrival of Europeans. Adopted as the United States’ national symbol in 1782, there were only about 100,000 by then. Bald Eagle populations continued to decline in the 1800s due to loss of habitat and a corresponding loss of its prey. It was said to be at the edge of extinction in 1940 and that was followed by the introduction of DDT, a pesticide which further threatened the raptor causing its eggs to have very fragile shells. By the early 1960s, there were a mere 487 pairs of mated eagles in the lower 48 it was declared an endangered species. DDT was banned in 1972 and since then the Bald Eagle has made an extraordinary comeback, being removed from the endangered species list in 2007.

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February 24th, 2019

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