Reasonable numbers of both species of eagle at Yakumo at the moment but there really isn’t that much to eat for them…
And not opps for decent photos either.
More hungry eagles
Tag: Steller’s Sea Eagle
Twiggy
The eagles are back at Yakumo. This one (I think it’s the same one) always occupies the same spot on the river and it’s difficult to get a clear shot of it as it’s usually obscured by twigs. Hence the nickname ‘Twiggy’.
There seemed to be about 20-30 eagles of both species but for the third winter running salmon numbers are very low. As this is their main food supply I don’t think they’ll stick around for long. This juvenile Steller’s was pitifully thin…
Twiggy did take a dump though; this photo is post-dump pose. Twiggy has eaten something recently at least.
Other interesting stuff around included Whooper Swan, Crested Kingfisher and Stejneger’s Scoter.
Late Winter Trip 2023 #23
One advantage of getting up so early every day was the early morning light…
Late Winter Trip 2023 #21
No winter trip in Hokkaido is complete without a Steller’s Sea Eagle on the ice pic…
And here’s a bonus White-tailed Eagle on a post…
And on a tetrapod…
Late Winter Trip 2023 #19
A Steller’s Sea Eagle on one of the rivers in early morning light…
Late Winter Trip 2023 #4
Only a few Steller’s around, most must have already gone back north…
Seriously quiet
Still crazily quiet birdwise. Deep snow everywhere…
I was hoping for some crossbills but all I got in the pinetrees was that big black and white chicken….and even that was not posing for photos yesterday.
The local Steller’s #4
I wonder how many years this individual has been coming to this spot every winter?
I also wonder which windswept cape in the far northeast of Russia it goes to in summer. Is it half of a pair? If so where is its significant other? So many questions…
The local Steller’s #3
On its good side…
And flying towards me…
The local Steller’s #2
I noticed the Steller’s had dropped behind a sea wall and I snuck up and there it was…
It looks a bit grizzled. How old is it? I think it’s a male (it seems a bit small)…
This winter I’ve noticed its right eye is knacked.
The left eye looks normal enough.
What happened to its eye I wonder? Is the eagle equivalent of a cataract? Is it blind in that eye? Like I say I think this individual is probably quite old.
The local Steller’s #1
We were east of town today. It was snowing but not so cold. There is a spot where the same Steller’s Sea Eagle returns every winter. It was pretty active today, first speeding away in pursuit of something…
A quiet end to January
Not a Rough-legged sadly…
Heavy snow and very low temperatures have restricted my birding the last couple of weeks. Today we headed east where the snowfall is usually much less but even there it was piled high. Not a vintage day for photos.
A bit quiet birding wise. A flock of Japanese Waxwing flew over (with one pixel-peeped Bohemian) and the local Steller’s was around.
Amongst the Carrion and Large-billed Crows in the port I was surprised to see this first winter Rook. This is a winter visitor only here and is usually found in large skittish flocks in agricultural fields. Strange to see a lone one poking around in the fish scraps.
