We did the Mount Keen loop yesterday and just at the top of the Fungle we disturbed a Golden Eagle on a carcase. It couldn’t have been more than 50 feet away and just rose slowly into the air. They are massive, you won’t confuse one with a buzzard.

You were privileged then, the buzzards have been very active round our way over the last week and I mean like all day every day over my garden. (slight hijack) I have spotted an exotic beauty recently with video proof but even then, no one would want to believe it.

Was even interviewed by the BBC who didn’t bother to show on their already busy schedule that evening on local news and the fact this animal had been spotted a few times within days of me capturing footage of it passing through my village.

Fantastic sight. I’ve seen a pair once about 10 years ago. Mrs Yak and I were climbing mid-week on the Rosa Pinnacle, Arran. When we were on the top pitch we looked down to see a pair of golden eagles flying under us. Amazing sight.

They’re kind of uncannily big aren’t they, there’s something a bit unworldly and uncanny seeing them in the air. Always a treat to see… Sea eagles get bigger but I’ve only seen those in the distance, not the same really.

We spotted a lammergeier in the alps, now that was stupidly big. Bit not as pretty. (well- I think it was, I’m no expert but it was the right area and the right size)

Cool, i’ve never seem one in the wild.

We get buzzards overhead from home daily, i love it when i spook one in the woods & the first i know of it is catching a glimpse of it glide through the canopy.

Got close to observe this heron fish the other day

[/url]Heron at Butterrow by martinddd, on Flickr[/img]

Saw a sea eagle last week, was very impressive! Lammergeiers are amazing too.

I nearly hit a Golden Eagle in the truck a few years ago. It was flying low, maybe 6-10ft off the ground when it came over a hedge and skimmed the bonnet of the Hilux. Easily blocked out the entire windscreen. Bloody massive so it was, and hauling ass.

Funnily enough I disturbed a Buzzard yesterday in Davagh Forest, took off a few feet away from me. Still a big bird but you couldn’t mistake them up close.

I saw a sea eagle whilst out cycling in Kerry last year, it was sitting on a post just off the road and then upped and flew off, awesome sight, made my day.

I’ve seen a couple of White tailed eagles when staying on the west coast. Only seen a Golden eagle once years ago when out walking in Cairngorms with my dad.

Rubbish pic of a very wet White tailed eagle that was a little too far away 🙄
[url=https://flic.kr/p/egKUbx]Eilean Shona 2013-220[/url] by Gavin Belton, on Flickr

Nice one. I’ve seen Golden and White Tailed (Sea) Eagles over on Mull, but they are pretty common over there. Never had a definitive sighting of an eagle in Aberdeenshire though. A few maybes, but they don’t look so big when they are far away 🙂

Reminds me of this for some reason.
[video]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVS1UfCfxlU[/video]

They are fantastic things. I came face to face with one on Skye many years ago. It was wet and windy – he didn’t hear me coming. We eyed each other up for a few seconds from maybe 10m off… Then he just took off green a carcass and glided off…

Had a good run of luck when I as in the states recently saw a Bald eagle sat on a log in a pool next to the road who was happy to sit there as I stared at him, also came round a tight corner and almost ran over a turkey vulture that was eating something on the ground.

Ugly things but pretty huge close up.

Re. bears, it’s still dark in Alaska for another hour or so but check this link during daylight hours and you’ll see bears catching salmon. Absolutely brilliant

http://explore.org/#live-cams/player/brown-bear-salmon-cam-brooks-falls

Not in the golden eagle or any eagle league but here in the Chilterns (Hughenden valley) there’s red kites everywhere can sometimes count 7-8 above circling the woods/fields. They are pretty impressive especially when they come down low and you can make out almost every detail.

I saw what was probably the same eagle last week. Had descended from Mount Keen and was going up the hill on the other side of Glen Tanar. There’s no mistaking that lolloping flight as they beat those huge wings.
Best sighting I had was similar to Matt only it was as I approached the ridge of Glas Beinn – the Corbet on Skye next to Blaven
. The Eagle was just gliding along on the other side of the ridge parallel and slightly below. The sun glancing off its back and wings Madeira look especially golden. It had a little look at me and just kept on drifting around the edge of the corrie.

Saw one flying over An Teallach a couple of months ago.

Quite a stirring sight and yes, bloody massive.

Had one buzz my minibus when driving students over the Ord Peninsula on Skye many years ago. Came in from behind and swooped along the road directly in front of the bus before rising and veering off to the side. Wingspan was as wide as the bus windscreen.

Down here, whenever I am making hay I have constant company from buzzards, kites, kestrels, falcons and black headed gulls. They just love the rich pickings I throw up when working the fields.

Also have large numbers of Herons here. They love to feast on frogs and field voles that are everywhere.

Saw a Golden Eagle near Thirlmere about 12 years ago I would think, not around there anymore 🙁

Cycling in the Picos de Europa a few years back, cruising down a narrow mountain road into Potes, according to the missus a Golden Eagle was cruising along a couple of feet above and behind me for a couple of hundred metres. Had I known, I’d probably have freaked out and gone over the edge…

Love Kestrels

Highly unlikely I’ll ever get to see an eagle in my part of Britain, only tourist Eagles, (buzzards). Fortunately kites are starting to spread into North Wilts in increasing numbers which is wonderful. Had a couple glide past me near Avebury and the Ridgeway a couple of weeks or so ago, and they’re a big bird when you have it go past about ten-twelve feet away. Beautiful bird. One day I hope to get up to That Scotlandshire and see golden and sea eagles.
Managed to get a few photos of the kites which I’m chuffed with, considering I was using a LUMIX TZ30, with just the viewscreen in bright sunlight to rely on:

[/url]Red Kite, Ridgeway. by Adrian Hillier, on Flickr
[ing][url=https://flic.kr/p/wT8Md6]Red Kite, The Ridgeway.[/url] by Adrian Hillier, on Flickr

Managed to clock a Philippine Eagle in the Quezon National park. I was dead pleased….after I climbed up a rock outcrop on a large hill to get a view over the canopy. It was gliding about 300m away and maybe 50m below over a valley

Here’s one someone else photographed 🙂

Might not have the biggest wingspan of the eagles, but it is the longest and I think the most beautiful.

Actually, thinking about those days roaming around the jungle, seeing butterflies the size of my hand, snakes, all sorts of colorful birds… kind of makes me want to give up on lab medicine and go down the ecology route.

Tom_W1987 – Member

Might not have the biggest wingspan of the eagles, but it is the longest and I think the most beautiful.

Beautiful bird indeed! I like.

At my home town in N.Borneo I can see eagle everyday which is sad because they now have to fly to the city/town in search of food due to deforestation by ZMs.

Fabulous looking bird, that!

Unfortunately I didn’t get any photographs as I think I took my 20mm F1.7 lens expecting to be in low light conditions under the canopy. Couldn’t be bothered to take a crap picture, just watched it. 😀

At my home town in N.Borneo I can see eagle everyday which is sad because they now have to fly to the city/town in search of food due to deforestation by ZMs.

Yeah 🙁 the Philippines forests have been pretty much gutted – luckily there are some pretty large swathes of forest in the North that are either inaccessible/so remote that only tribes bother living there or they are full of communist guerrillas. The central islands have pockets of forest that have been protected. The South is better, Mindanao if you’ve got the bollocks or Palawan if not. Not sure how untouched Palawan will stay though.

I’d like to visit Burma whilst it’s still in a time warp.

On the other end of the scale…. 😀 I saw one of these little beauties momentarily, whilst boating down a river.

Tom_W1987 – Member

On the other end of the scale…. I saw one of these little beauties momentarily, whilst boating down a river.

Woww! That’s a nice colour kingfisher. Normally they are blue in colour if I can recall.

edit:

Tom_W1987 – Member
The South is better, Mindanao if you’ve got the bollocks or Palawan if not. Not sure how untouched Palawan will stay though.

I wouldn’t even go anyway near there with a foreign looking face. Your price will be around £1 – £2 million if you are lucky or head off.

Wow! Twice in my life I’ve seen a Kingfisher, the bog standard blue British variety – once when I was a kid and then 40 years later- and they’re a real WTF was that? event.
But that one..?

Yup, sitting there looking at me whilst I passed it on a canoe….could have easily missed it if I wasn’t looking out for snakes whilst using my hands to wind through some rocks…..darted off pretty quickly.

That Philippine Eagle was a lucky sight as well, as they don’t usually fly over the Quezon range because of the rampant deforestation of the lowland forests…they are usually found further north.

So I had a lucky trip. The only thing that would have made it better, would have been Tarsiers. Unfortunately I didn’t get round to visiting those islands….would love to see those….as well as some monitor lizards.

The worlds beautiful isn’t it, I’ve been thinking recently…that I’d happily trade 30 years of my life for 15 in a pristine environment.

Yesterday, James was drinking an early tea watching a pigeon in the garden when he said it exploded! Took him a minute or two to realise a Sparrow Hawk had hit it. Torn the pigeon to pieces within a couple of minutes, just feathers and inners left. It then took off taking out a song bird sitting on the fence as it climbed over it!
Obviously one of the ‘ninja’ of the countryside?

Tom_W1987 – Member
So I had a lucky trip. The only thing that would have made it better, would have been Tarsiers.

I just hope you don’t find Tarsiers at the market coz people like to keep them as pet then later as food.

As a kid I have seen them as pet in various sizes … very sad as they are very slow moving animal.

I don’t mind one or two of the Tarsiers being kept by the native head hunters (usually for their children) but Not the city folks for amusement.