Today’s post is late and it will also be short. I just arrived home this morning from a short camping trip designed to be a shakedown cruise to work out the kinks in my new camping trailer. Birds were scarce and I didn’t get any great photos but I think this one may be of interest to viewers for its display of some of the important field marks of a juvenile Golden Eagle.
I photographed this bird two days ago in Tooele County while I was still pulling my trailer and before I’d even left the pavement for the dirt roads that I prefer. It had been raining so it was overcast and I wasn’t close to the eagle but I think it’s a pretty striking look at some field marks that many don’t associate with Golden Eagles.
Juveniles have white patches on the ventral surfaces of their wings but even more distinctively (in my view) they also have a white-based tail with a well-defined dark tip (the tip appears as a dark terminal band when the tail is fanned, as in this bird). I thought this angle on the eagle in this flight posture was just about perfect for demonstrating both features.
Obviously the bird is about to land on the sagebrush in front of and below it. The photo is mediocre but I think it has value for the field marks it displays so it will be one of the few images I’ll save from my trip.
I’ll report on the ups and downs of my camping trip tomorrow. There were some of both…
Ron
I love the photo, I have learned so much from you on identifying eagles. I live in north central Montana on the Milk River, so I am fortunate to see and photograph ( I’m a beginner) both bald and golden all the time. Thanks for sharing your knowledge of eagles, your photo is a perfect shot for us to see all their markings. Thanks
I think that’s a pretty terrific shot. I struggle capturing good shots of birds in flight. Yours is head on with such visible detailed markings! Wish I could have seen that!
And this isn’t a great photo how? 😉 Magnificent view of this juvenile braving the elements. I still say that most of us would be thrilled to have the shots that fall victim to your “delete” finger. 😉
And score one for German engineering — my little roadster can be repaired! Woo Hoo!
Marty, the eagle has little detail because it was so far away.
And congrats for “saving” your ride.
Saw my first Golden Eagle (rare here) last Monday in a tree while on a walk near my house. I got a surprisingly good perched shot of him through my scope with my iPhone held up to it. No way could I get a flight shot like yours, although it looked exactly like your photo. The friend I was with called the white wing patches windows to the clouds and they did seem almost translucent.
Congrats, Lyle! Any day we encounter a Golden Eagle is a good one and a nice photo is a bonus.
Wow! He’s beautiful!
He sure is. Thanks, Shelley.
YES! It does show the markings well. Often notice the white patches on the ventral wing surface and, sometimes, the white on the tail which has been a bit of a puzzle for me. Will have to watch for the tail more closely as, at a distance, it’s sometimes hard to sort it out! 😉 You made it home anyway…. 😉
Thanks, Judy. Yup, made it home but I’m pooped.
Amazing (and lovely) to see those field marks.
I hope (fervently) that the ups were stronger than the downs on your trip.
Thanks, EC. I dunno, there were quite a few downs…
Easily fixed I hope.
Thanks Ron – nice photo. Reminds me I have to get out to other areas of Northern AZ to see one of these guys or gals.
I hope you make it out there soon, Everett.
Perfect field marks, Ron, just perfect!
I thought they were pretty good too, Sallie. Thank you.
Lovely image, Ron!
Thanks, Thomas.