Dear tweetsters,

Just ran Green Lake (Seattle) in the brilliant sunshine this crispy
(20F/-10C) morning. About 40% of the lake's 256acres/103ha is covered with a
thin sheet of ice. The last (8) Pied-billed Grebes (Podilymbus podiceps)
have left the lake (since Saturday). About 80 Ruddy Ducks (Oxyura
jamaicensis) have arrived since that same time.
On the second time around heard a Glaucous-winged Gull (Larus glaucescens)
alarm call across the lake; spotted two Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus
leucocephalus) circling across the lake.
I halted near the stand of tall black cottonwoods on the east shore as the
eagles started coming towards me. They were aiming for a Glaucous-winged
Gull about 50 yards/m from shore and proceeded to take turns diving at it.
The larger female (with brown at the tip of her tail feathers and some brown
on the head; subadult) clearly more intent than the male, they took turns
diving at the gull, which flattened out every time the eagles passed. On the
15th pass by the female (the male had made about 4 passes) the female eagle
struck the gull but didn't lock on to it. The gull started diving when the
eagles passed but clearly could not keep up, as the eagles made smaller
circles and more passes. On the female's 6th pass (after the male's 4th),
the female eagle picked the surfacing gull up and flew off with the
struggling gull in her talons. The male eagle followed as the female started
in the direction of the island, towards the northwest. About 3/4 of the way
there she dropped the live gull, the male eagle, still following,
immediately attempted to get the gull but did not make contact. Both eagles
made about 4 more passes, the gull again flattening out on the water (as far
as could tell), before giving up and retreating to the island.
I didn't stay around to see how this ended (seeing as how that could take a
while). But it was exciting to see these two eagles hunt together.
This subadult female is a "new" bird. I had not seen her until about three
weeks ago. The male has no individual markings on him, but his voice (he is
quite talkative when they perch together in the top of the trees on the
island or in trees in lower Woodland Park) is very much like that of the
bird that's been around for close to three months now.

Martin Muller, Seattle
MartinMuller at email.msn.com