Bald eagles keep an eye on their nest all year. This pair will not get into the whole breeding sequence until later in the year. However, parents must guard their nest. As you can see they are very alert… That’s mom in the 1st photo and dad in the 2nd one. Eventually Captain Doug and I saw the reason for their outlook… another adult bald eagle way up high, perhaps thinking about, oh I don’t know, trying to lay claim to the nest?
What a delightful surprise this afternoon at Jordan Lake: Captain Doug and I found the parents of the Heron Point bald eagle nest sitting side by side … its about time for this pair to start thinking about the next generation!
The eagle was intent upon something way up in the sky. The eagle shifted it’s glance and perched thinking. Suddenly it exploded almost straight up off of the branch and into the air. Captain Doug and I both said at the same time “I haven’t never seen an eagle launch straight up like that”. The eagle hovered then leaned over on its right wing, bent around the tree and was gone. FYI the flight sequence occurred in less than two seconds.
This bald eagle totally, absolutely ignored Captain Doug and I. I wondered what had her attention. Leaning back, I looked up and up and up. All I could see was sky and a few clouds. It was obvious however, because of her attention heavenward, that there was something there that I, mere human, just could not bring into sight.
Egrets and herons, on their middle toes, have a special edge that acts like a comb. They use this pectinate edge to reach up into the special soft feathers on their chest and gather up some of the extra fine fluff that lingers there. Placing the fluff in their beaks it becomes a wash cloth to help clean all the fishy leftovers from their feathers. Here you can see some of that fluff at the end of the beak of this great egret.
September 6, 2025 is International Vulture Awareness Day. I certainly wouldn’t want to live in a world without vultures scattered within it. They do such an excellent job of helping our environment stay clean. Vultures help to control a lot of otherwise harmful debris. Yes, their diet is filled with decomposing carcasses and that is okay with me. Join me in my thanks to these marvelous birds such as this black vulture at Jordan Lake.
doc ellen's journey 