Yesterday while reviewing my older photos I made a double discovery in a short Bald Eagle flight series – a photo I like very much that I didn’t know existed and a mystery.
1/1600, f/7.1, ISO 500, Canon 7D, Canon EF 500mm f/4L IS USM + EF 1.4 III Extender, not baited, set up or called in
This is the photo that first grabbed my eye. I’ve always loved Bald Eagle flight shots with the shaded Wasatch Mountains in the background that are sometimes possible to get during the morning at Farmington Bay WMA. If you can get decent light on the bird I think the dark, textured mountains are an excellent backdrop for contrasty, very dark brown and white adult Bald Eagles. And this shot is as sharp as a tack. I’m not sure how or why I skipped over the photo for slightly more than ten years but I did.
And yesterday when I rediscovered the photo I happened to look at the next shot in my photo organizer of what turned out to be the same eagle in flight. That’s when the mystery appeared.
This photo was taken four frames in the burst later than the previous one. What in the world are those white spots trailing away from the eagle’s beak? Because of their position and their somewhat arced collective shape as they trail away from the tip of the eagle’s beak while ‘he’ is making a banking, descending approach to the water and ice below my first impulse was to assume the eagle’s beak was the source of the white spots, whatever they are.
But as far as I can tell that doesn’t make much sense. What could they be? And why is it happening? I’ve never seen an eagle throw up food or water in flight. I have photos of an eagle eating a fish in midair where scales that look like these white spots are coming off of the fish but this eagle didn’t have a fish. Or any other food for that matter.
Maybe it’s just a coincidence of timing that makes it look like the white spots are coming off the eagle’s beak and their real source was something else. But what could it be?
I got a possible, unlikely but still possible, hint of what the source could be when I looked more carefully at the uncropped photo.
There’s a small portion of another bird in flight, likely a gull, in the upper right corner of the frame. To me it seems even less likely that the gull is the source of the spots than the eagle. I suppose it’s possible that the gull shook water off in flight and that’s what we’re seeing but I’m at least a little skeptical of that theory.
So I’m stumped. It doesn’t really matter of course but things like this drive me bonkers when I can’t figure them out. Any thoughts from my readers? I hope it doesn’t turn out to be something obvious that I just didn’t think of.
If it does it won’t be the first time.
Ron
Note: You’re probably wondering if the three photos in the burst between these two give any hints about the source of the white spots. I wonder the same thing but I deleted them and ten years later I can’t remember why.
The eagle was vaping.
Finally, we have a conclusive solution to the mystery…
I have all sorts of “conspiracy theories!” Mwahaha. *eyebrow waggle* 😈😈
JUST KIDDING!
This is one handsome Bald Eagle and I love being able to see so much feather detail! 😀
Thanks, Marty. Yes, it’s so sharp that detail stands out well.
The eagle in full flight view is AWESOME.
Looking at the next two pictures & those white spots… they seem to be in the same position so I am not thinking poop or scales and they really haven’t moved??? & if you look to the far right of the last picture… seems to be some white spots/sparkle there, also. Maybe something in the far background that has caught just a bit of sun to make IT sparkle some?
CJ, they’re in the same position because it’s the same photo. I’ve just cropped the last one differently.
Love a good brain teaser ❗️If it’s poop, it’s a lot.
Back to this beautiful eagle… love this picture 😁 Another treasure in your chest ❗️
Thanks, Diana. I’m pretty fond of that photo too. Now that I’ve found it.
Haven’t a clue about the white stuff.
Now about that clipped wing, or is it😉
It is.
You only just found this shot???? You really do need someone (and yes I can think of volunteers) to go through your photos.
That is one awesome shot of an majestic bird.
I am as usual clueless about the white spots but my first thought was that the eagle scared the crap out of the gull. Or perhaps the gull was a Monty Python fan and was, instead of farting, ‘pooping in your general direction’ as an expression of defiance.
“You only just found this shot?”
EC, I’m sure I knew I had it soon after I took it because I obviously culled the images from that day. But somehow I missed noticing how good it was. That happens sometimes when you take as many photos as I do.
Don’t know, too many possibilities…..
Love the eagle!
Thanks, April.
Count me in with the poop theorists. Given the spots are out of focus, I’m betting the eagle scared the poop out of the gull.
Ha, those gulls don’t scare easily Bernard. More than once I saw them pulling the tails of eagles when both were in flight.
Many birds, not just seabirds, have a so-called “salt gland.” And they can “drool” from their nares copiously at times. We had a Ferruginous Hawk at the California Raptor Center, who, when stressed, produced a stream of mucus or whatever. If she shook her head, it would fly off in large drops. Maybe this eagle was under stress from the gulls?
Now that’s definitely something I hadn’t thought of, Sallie.
Could there be a flock of white birds in the far distance?
Marian, I’m reasonably sure what you’re seeing is just snow on the mountains in the background. If you look at the first version of that photo there’s more of it behind the eagle’s left wing.
Eagle spits a mouthful of feathers as he shouts, “There’s more wher that came from, you #}{~<€^€£**%} pest! (Okay so it’s probably poop.)
I hope your first theory is wrong, Arwen. I’d hate to be thought of as a pest by any of ‘my’ birds…
My guess is that the gull is harassing the source of the deposit. Perhaps another Bald eagle with a carp. Long lens tunnel vision strikes again.
I didn’t think of that possibility, Neil.
Totally betting it’s bird do.
Could be. I wouldn’t bet against you but having bird ‘poop’ break up into little pieces in the air like that seems al least a little unusual. .
On the right side of the uncropped photo ahead of the eagle and below the other bird there are fainter spots also – not that that solves the mystery! Beautiful photo regardless…..😀
Judy, I guess I’m not seeing the fainter spots you describe. But as I made abundantly clear in a recent blog post my eyesight is far from good.
Even though the depth of field is quite narrow and the eagle is very sharp, I would still guess that the out of focus white spots came from a different source. Definitely a mystery!
I’d say a different source too, Bruce. If the eagle was the source it seems to me that the spots close to its beak would be sharper.
Your in-flight photos are always so good. I would put my money on the gull passing above. Fish scales or drops of water falling from the Gull. Now if you had never shown the Gull – then we would have had a real mystery with no answers and only our speculation.
Ha, believe me Everett – my flight shots aren’t “always so good”…
Possibly a bird above that pooped. White string of droplets falling.
I hadn’t thought of that possibility, Carol. I think it’s conceivable.
What if the eagle interacted in the air with the other bird and the bird lost some tiny feathers?
Cindy, if that happened it seems to me that by the time this shot was taken the “feathers” would be pretty far behind the eagle.
G-Day Ron,
My monitor shows the “white spots” as very out of focus, compared to the sharp Eagle; and before I saw your next photo of the passing Gull above, I instantly thought Fish Scales falling from another bird. Yup–putting my money on the distant fish scales falling off another bird! Don
Could be, Don. To me it seems like a long shot but long shots are occasionally known to be winners.