Irene asked -
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I was out in my yard yesterday about 3 p.m. and a bunch of noisy noisy
crows went overhead hassling either a juvie bald eagle or...a golden? It
was waaaay big and dark from underneath. How wd I distinguish?
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The two plumages one could possibly confuse are those of a hatch-year Bald Eagle and an adult Golden Eagle - the younger the Bald and the older the Golden, the closer the ventral plumages will be.

Golden Eagles of all ages have the golden tipping on the nape feathers which instantly distinguish them from any of our other raptor species. However, this field mark obviously cannot be seen from below. There are two things which one should look for:

1) Wing shape - Bald Eagles have a wing that is basically the same width all its length. Golden Eagles' wings widen at the "wrist" such that the wing flares out (as on most other buteos) 3/4 way out from the body. Quite discernable at great distance with practice.
2) Young Bald Eagles almost always start getting some whitish mottling on the underwing coverts towards the end of their first year. Golden Eagles of any age *never* show any mottling on the underwing coverts. This is not useful for the youngest Baldies just out of the nest which are a uniform dark brown all over.

There are other differences in bill shape and size, voice, etc. but none that would be useful to any extent in an overflying bird.

- Jack Bowling
jcbowling at mindlink.bc.ca
Fort Nelson, BC