Eagles!

One of the cool things about Homer (and Alaska in general) is the number of Bald Eagles living here.  They are everywhere.  The first time I came to Homer in 2008 there was a woman dubbed "the eagle lady" who fed the eagles near the harbor.  As a result you would see them by the dozen sitting on pilings, along rock walls and on the tops of shops and homes.  She died later that year and there was legitimate concern as to what the eagles would do when deprived of one of their major food sources.  People with small dogs had to be particularly careful as eagles have been known to target them.  In the end they decided to continue feeding the Eagles through the winter and then slowly wean them off the unnatural food source.

Now, a few years removed from "the eagle lady", the eagles are still plentiful but are not as concentrated around the harbor.  Our country has perpetrated a few myths about eagles, portraying them as hunters descending on their prey with a mighty screech. While eagles do hunt for their food, consuming fish, birds or small mammals, they are also scavengers.  The best place in Homer to get photos of Bald Eagles is at the dump.  Eagles, along with the Glaucous winged gulls, are drawn to trash, dead animals and other easy meals.

As for the "mighty screech" that you often hear on TV, whoever first put eagles on film decided that the eagle's actual call was too wimpy to be associated with America's mascot.  Instead they dubbed in the voice of the Red Tailed Hawk which provides that classic screech. Here is a video of a Red Tailed Hawk's call, and here is a Bald Eagle's call.  The eagle's call is quite beautiful but it is not what you would expect from such a large, powerful bird.

Interestingly, the juvenile eagles often appear larger than the adults.  This is due to the juvenile's feathers which are longer and heavier than those on an adult eagle.  The juvenile feathers serve as "training wheels" while young eagles are learning to fly.  The adult's smaller feathers allow them to fly more gracefully and with greater maneuverability than the younger eagles.

Juvenile Eagle between two adults

Despite the cynical attitude I've treated eagles with in this post, I still stop an admire them when they soar past.  They add to the majesty of this place and it is a privilege to be able to see them with such frequency.