Golden Eagle Combat
July 29, 2004
On a long, high-mountain, gravel road, over the Buzzard-Muddy divide that connects Rifle and Redstone, Colorado, we spied what appeared to be a Turkey Vulture circling above. The bird was dark and about the same size as a Turkey Vulture, but somehow I sensed a difference. So, I pulled over to the side of the road, grabbed my binoculars and quickly identified the critter. The golden nape and pale bars on the upper wing were distinctive and together with its buteo-like appearance, identified it as a Golden Eagle. Well, Golden Eagles are not terribly uncommon the western mountains, but it is always fun to find one. From our roadside vantage overlooking a valley consisting of pasture land at the bottom, Quaking Aspens and assorted conifers on the ridges, the eagle was taking advantage of the updraft from the valley to float around lazily in the afternoon sun. By now, Pat also had her binoculars on our subject bird.
Our bird suddenly dove down on some flying object below. That object was identified as a second Golden Eagle which also dove down among the aspen trees to escape the attack. At the last second, the target eagle twisted and turned and we could not tell if the two had made contact. But when the aggressive bird sailed back into the air, it reached with its beak to remove something (maybe feathers) from its talons. The target bird did not seem to be badly injured because it flew up and began to circle near the aggressor bird. Several times we watched the similar scenario of aggressor and target bird. I wondered if it might be some kind of mating ritual where pairs meet in the air, grab each other’s talons and swirl like a helicopter toward earth. But this never happened. I also considered that the target bird might be a young eagle that had recently fledged from the nest and the mother or father bird was trying to drive it away from the parent’s territory to find one of its own.
Then, 2 more Golden Eagles appeared. Again, the aggressor bird dove on the target bird. This time, the target bird landed on the branch of a tree and when the aggressor dove at it, the escape tactic was to hang, upside down from the limb. At this point, the two new eagles joined the “game.” They both dove rapidly toward the seemingly helpless, upside-down bird. All of this action was taking place several hundred yards away from us so I could not tell if the birds had made contact. But, after all three attack birds had passed, the target bird, still upside down, dropped from the limb, head first, toward the ground. Low shrubbery and trees prevented us from seeing the ground where the eagle had dropped so we could not determine its status. But my impression was that the 3 attack birds were not intent on some avian game, but their attack seemed murderous.
Then, 2 more Golden Eagles appeared. Again, the aggressor bird dove on the target bird. This time, the target bird landed on the branch of a tree and when the aggressor dove at it, the escape tactic was to hang, upside down from the limb. At this point, the two new eagles joined the “game.” They both dove rapidly toward the seemingly helpless, upside-down bird. All of this action was taking place several hundred yards away from us so I could not tell if the birds had made contact. But, after all three attack birds had passed, the target bird, still upside down, dropped from the limb, head first, toward the ground. Low shrubbery and trees prevented us from seeing the ground where the eagle had dropped so we could not determine its status. But my impression was that the 3 attack birds were not intent on some avian game, but their attack seemed murderous.
I considered hiking to the spot where we had last seen the target eagle to determine its condition. But, it was private ranch land and I was doubtful that I could even find the exact spot where the attack took place. We watched the 3 remaining eagles as they glided over a ridge and out of sight. They appeared and disappeared several times. Sometimes catching an updraft and soaring high in the sky. We continued to watch them for maybe 10 minutes and never again saw 4 birds. Our assumption is that the target bird was either injured or killed.
The location of this action was about ½ mile west of the locked-gate, main entrance of the Lazy CF Ranch.
At least two of the four eagles were young based on the presence of white patches on the undersides of their wings. I did not notice the age of the target bird but assume that it was likely a younger bird too.
Since I am not an eagle expert, I do not know if this behavior is common practice among Golden Eagles or whether this was an anomaly. However, it was fascinating to watch and a little horrible too.
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