Empty Nest Syndrome: Golden Eagles

Dale Matson

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June 13th 

This is the second year that I have followed this adult pair of Golden Eagles. The chicks hatched in early April and I was there to photograph and video the adults and chicks until June 13^th when there was no more evidence of any activity in or around the nest. I am happy to report that both chicks fledged again this year.

I was there on a weekly basis to follow the development of the chicks and to photograph the adults who had a perch site nearby where they could observe the nest when they were not there or were not out hunting.

Game seems plentiful in the area and I would often see a rabbit or squirrel near the nest.

Much is made of the fact that some birds will push the competition out of the nest yet I have not observed this behavior watching three different Golden Eagle offspring pairs, and one pair was raised with a Red-Tailed Hawk!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-R_d2KGmJAs&t=26s

         I titled this “Empty Nest Syndrome” mainly because I am sad to see the birds depart. I have noticed however that there is no such thing as an empty nest since smaller birds also make their homes in eagle nests. You can see the smaller birds darting in and out of the eagle nest in the videos. Perhaps the eagle nests also serve as a kind of protection for the smaller birds.

         This year I used both a Sony A7R3 and a Sony A9 with my 100-400mm GM lens. Most of my photos are shot in cropped (APS-C) mode which gives me more reach (560mm). I am such an old man that I lost my 1.4X Teleconverter in Alaska filming Bald Eagles there last Fall and did not realize until this week that it was not on my lens. Need a new one. There are new long Sony lenses available this week and I will probably get the more affordable 200-600 mm Lens if funds become available.

         This time of year, however the Sierra Nevada Bighorn Sheep and eagles are scarcer and my attention is turned more toward landscape photos especially with the amazing flow of rivers and waterfalls filled to the brim with snowmelt from a bigger than usual snowpack. Fresno County is blessed with two major rivers that flow west down the Sierra slopes. The Kings River and the San Joaquin make for wonderful wild sections and reservoirs abundant with wildlife and beauty.

         I made a YouTube movie combining the video clips and photographs and it can be seen here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y5s22BcF6uo&feature=youtu.be