Eagle in the drizzle

February 19th, 2023

When I looked at the weather this morning, the chance of rain was 30%. I have often found that such forecasts are often wrong and do not make plans based upon them. I was discouraged to see the rain fairly heavy as I drove to the birding location around a half an hour before dawn. The grey sky and droplets didn’t bode well for a successful day. I resolved to try anyway and proceeded to my planned park location.

When I got to the bird location, I found drizzle instead of rain mixed with mist. After I assembled my gear, I placed a rain cover on my camera and lens. As I proceeded to the viewing platforms, the drizzle did not diminish but it also didn’t increase. Not a lot of bird out but also not a lot of people. There were a few walkers but the park was strangely empty.

The light was low when I initially got to the main water area. I saw several juvenile bald eagles wheeling around searching. They kept dipping near the water and then rising with no prize. They kept trying and I marveled a their persistent. I wondered about the target of their search but could not see anything.

When the light rose to a more manageable level and the drizzle had subsided, a single eagle found the searched for object of interest. The eagle wheeled several times around the water. This gave me several opportunities to capture the bird in the air. The backdrop of trees in the mist offered a wonderful setting for this flight.

Suddenly the bird dove for the prize. The bird proceeded effortlessly in a simple moment of complete silence. A simple splash of water rose into the air and the eagle was on the way into the air with the prize of the day. Within moments the eagle to an easy branch and proceed to consume a well earned meal.