Jordan Lake

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By osprey family report: quizzical

Jordan Lake osprey family report:
Mom osprey (far right) and one of her three chicks sure are quizzical.
I wonder if it is because a black vulture has settled on a limb
only ten feet to the side and about 15 feet above me.
It is said one cannot go back in time – but I am going to attempt it with the Jordan Lake osprey family.
I kept an eye on them as I finished watching the fledging of the Jordan Lake eagle family.
So, this photo was taken on June 24, 2015 – keep an eye for the dates on upcoming family shots.

WALK9027 Jun 24 2015 @ 06-44-19 Stinky osprey chicks

By Independence Day 2015

May your holiday be one of peace and joy.
May we each remember that the freedom that was so dearly bought is to be shared amongst kin, friends and countries.
While we thank those who sacrificed for our independence then and continue to give their labor and life for freedom today.
Hershey, the milk-chocolate eagle, soars above us because we also care for his world too.

WALK0841 Jun 29 2015 @ 11-19-21 Ebenezer Hershey 4th July

By food security for Hershey

Having caught his fish with only his right foot,
Hershey needs to secure his grip for the flight to an eating perch.
The fish is still within his focal points as Hershey reaches to place his left foot for added grip.
Makes me a little dizzy just contemplating his bowed head, the forward flight and the downward vision…

WALK0867 Jun 29 2015 @ 11-19-25 Ebenezer Hershey foot plant

By snatch

The third step in Hershey’s fishing sequence:
the snatch.
Notice that he has caught the fish almost at the surface.
Sometimes I honestly believe bald eagles don’t like getting their feet wet.
Or perhaps it is that, unlike the osprey who so exuberantly goes whole body under when fishing,
the eagle practices a more finessed style of getting its fish.

WALK0849 Jun 29 2015 @ 11-19-22 Ebenezer Hershey snatch 2

By Hershey’s next step

Yesterday’s photo showed Hershey as he flared his talons preparing to strike.
Today’s photo shows the next step in the fishing sequence.
Hershey is sighting the fish just in front of his feet.
Eagles have two focal points in their eyes; they can see in two different directions at once.
Hershey has the fish in focus and also has things in focus that are at an angle of 45 degrees.
All the better for seeing the fish and its possible escape routes.

WALK0848 Jun 29 2015 @ 11-19-22 Ebenezer Hershey prestrike

By Hershey

This is Hershey.
I have watched Hershey for more than 4 years.
He got his name because he is the lightest colored bald eagle on Jordan Lake that I have seen.
All adult bald eagles have body and wing feathers that are brown,
usually such a deep brown that they often appear to be black.
But Hershey is a rich milk chocolate, hence his name.

WALK0847 Jun 29 2015 @ 11-19-22 Ebenezer Hershey talons