Tuesday, February 5, 2013

The Eagles Have Landed

These are the shots I came up with after 3 days, 8-1/2 hours, 498 mosquito bites, and 1 tick bite. Removing a tick out of my belly button was a new experience and one I hope to avoid in the future. Those suckers are hard to pull off! Please pray I don't get lyme disease or yellow fever. Thank you. :)









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57 comments:

The Cranky said...

Beautiful shots, absolutely beautiful! Capturing the chick is a once in a lifetime opportunity!

You are in my prayers but for the future: a half and half mixture of tea tree oil and water helps repel ticks. (They love the Great Scot and this helps.)

TexWisGirl said...

so, so cool! so, SO jealous! (except for that tick thing...)

Buttons Thoughts said...

Wow incredible. So worth it maybe not the tick but at least you never got 500 mosquito bites.) Wow. B

Black Jack's Carol said...

Oh my, the tick! Yes, sending no-disease vibes for sure! As for the photography.. wow! Just incredible. We won't have chicks here (Vancouver), I'm guessing, for at least another 3-4 weeks, although don't quote me. I'm not an expert :) Anyhow, enjoyed this post very much!

Anonymous said...

Dog-gone ticks, what purpose do they serve? Seriously!
Look at the wing span on that beauty, awesome!!! =)

mick said...

Wonderful shots of the eagle - especially the in-flight ones. I sympathize about all the bites - especially the tick. We have LOTS of ticks in Australia and I still haven't learnt how to deal with them!

Dana said...

Absolutely magnificent! The ones of the nest are my favorites.

I'm sorry about the tick. I hope all is well. :)

Tricia said...

Wow, these are amazing! Was the tick a little teeny-tiny thing? It's deer ticks that carry Lyme disease...hopefully it wasn't one of those.

Ruth Hiebert said...

I do hope you don't suffer any ill effects from the sacrifices you made to get these beautiful shots.

Linda at To Behold The Beauty said...

Gail! These are magnificent, girl! Love that one of the adult coming in for a landing, but they're all absolutely stunning. I'll pray for no lingering ill effects from your outing.

Wally Jones said...

What wonderful shots of the eagle! Very nice work! Should be interesting if you can track the chicks' progress.

Powell River Books said...

The baby pictures were well worth it. We have a eagle nest tree in our town right next to the seawalk, and no ticks that I know of. - Margy

Stewart M said...

About the tick - to take a line form a film: "thats a little more detail than I needed!"

Great set of shots - such an iconic bird.

Cheers and thanks for lining to WBW.

Stewart M - Melbourne

Phil Slade said...

It sure was a long job Gail but i guess you are satisfied with the results. You got some awesome pictures there from a great photo opportunity. I bet you can't feel those bites now.

Jori said...

Oh my goodness Gail! These are absolutely exquisite! The baby eagle in the nest?!?! Amazing! So sorry about the tick. Ew! I had what I thought was a blood blister on my leg once, until I touched it, and it's legs sprang out. Blech, no thanks!

eileeninmd said...

Very cool! Love the eagle shots and the little eaglet! Well done!

Anonymous said...

What amazing photos you were able to get of the Eagles feeding their young. Photo ops like these are extremely rare- lucky you, Gail.
Well done girl!

Hootin Anni said...

Super beautiful...so regal they are. We once had a couple of bald eagles in our trees in OUR YARD when we lived in Colorado. There's nothing like 'em.

Lynn said...

Love the eagles, Gail. (sorry about the bites and the tick . . .)

Dianne said...

these shots are amazing!
I love the majestic wing span
and the fuzzy baby :)

good work!! thanks

Anonymous said...

Oh Gail these are just beyond incredible!!!! I won't ask about how the tick got in your belly button ;)...but you are also very humorous in your writing.

Rebecca said...

Great photos! It's always so exciting to see eagles and these shots are amazing!

rainfield61 said...

A handsome one.

And everything you have gone through was nothing after all.

Kathy said...

You certainly hit the jackpot on this day!

Shug said...

I'm sorry about all the bug bites, but I sure do appreciate you for sticking with it in order to bring these gorgeous photos to your blog..
Just wish I had been there with you..
Hugs..
Shug

Stephanie said...

Wow Gail! These photos are incredible! I get to see Eagles on Sunday mornings when my hubby and I drive up to church in the mountains, but they are usually just sitting on a tree branch or flying over the river. Your photos really capture the moment.

I am so sorry about your tick experience! I will be praying for you :)

Hugs to you,
Stephanie

Lisa @ Two Bears Farm said...

These shots are AMAZING. I especially love the chick and the one where the eagle is flying into the nest.

I guess one good thing about winter is the ticks aren't out. Sigh.

Anonymous said...

OMG! Definitely worth it (and praying for no lyme disease)! These are absolutely magnificent, Gail! Nat Geo, I say!

Anonymous said...

Great shots! and totally worth the mosquito bites (maybe not the tick though). Love the one with the him bringing more nesting stuff.

hootnonny said...

Magnificent shots Gail! I'd say they are worth the bites and the tick head still in your belly button!

Jackie said...

Wow...jealous is the first one that popped into my head too!

Gail these shots are just the most incredible shots I have seen so far!

Wow...so so cool! I wish they were mine though!

the wild magnolia said...

I am so happy you have found the eagles.

All the shots are very good. The top and the eaglet alone in the nest are my favorites.

Majestic and magical captures.

Amy Burzese said...

Very cool! The little ones in the nest are so much fun! There is a nest near us, but we can't catch them perching on the edge or flying. It is too high to see inside at all. It is right over a friend's driveway. He said if you stop the car underneath they will throw bones and things out on you.

Lisa Gordon said...

These shots are just amazing, Gail!
Beautifully captured.

Coloring Outside the Lines said...

AWESOME~~ except for the tick part. Love shot number 3- that one is just fantastic!

Optimistic Existentialist said...

This would be so amazing to see!!!

Richard Pegler said...

Absolutely amazing captures of such an iconic bird, Gail. Brilliant!! I know how frightening it can be after being 'got' by a tic. It's my understanding that (fortunately) very few actually carry the disease. Good luck - but I'm sure you won't need it.

Chatty Crone said...

I would love to see that in person!

Chatty Crone said...

I would love to see that in person!

Deanna said...

Holy mackeral, those are just stunning pictures. I do believe that getting all those mosquito bites and the one tick bite was worth it to capture this beautiful bird and the baby....oh my!!

Linda at French Hollow said...

I love your photography, I adore you're blog - and I miss Louisiana...

Thank you for sharing!
Blessings, Linda

Neil said...

Well worth the time but not all the bites.Great shots.

Anonymous said...

Gail, these are priceless! What an experience, and as much as I loathe and fear ticks, after seeing these, I think they're totally worth it! How far away were you? Love the ones of that baby!!

Evelyn S. said...

First....a tick in your belly button?? OMG!!! Second and last....the eagle images are out of this world!

Hilary said...

What wonderful birds.. and an amazing experience, I'm sure. You got some fine shots .. I'm sure it wasn't easy. That little eaglet is so precious.

Vores have said...

Gorgeous photos:) Hanne Bente

EG CameraGirl said...

I dream of getting such wonderful shots of eagles. These are great!

Mary Howell Cromer said...

These are really marvelous!

Anonymous said...

Sorry to hear about the tick! But wow -- was it worth it! Amazing shots! And this must have been better in the flesh...

Starla said...

I am speechless!! What incredible photos and to capture the baby too!! (While I absolutely LOVE the first photo, I think my favorite is of parent and baby sitting side by side in the nest!)

BTW: The method I use to get ticks off the dog is very easy and I would imagine it would work with humans too!! Placing your finger over the tick's body, "twirl" it in a circular motion. You are not twisting the tick between two finger, but moving it's body in circles. Don't know why, but after a bit, they just pop out!! No pulling, or having the possibility of having the head separate from the body!! Has worked every time!

Anonymous said...

Fantastic shots of the eagles and their nestlings! I hate ticks, though.

Rambling Woods said...

Oh just amazing shots of something I would so love to watch in person. That was a lot of time to spend and then a tick.. Gross..Yes you have to be concerned about all these things. I hope nothing comes of this other than wonderful photos of the eagles Gail...Michelle

Kerry said...

omg they should make stamp or something out of one of these eagle shots. Holy cow.

Karen said...

Brilliant captures, well worth the squitter bites! I'd keep an eye on that tick bite though. I got Lyme from a tick, not pleasant!

Unknown said...

WOW! I am always amazing when I stop in here. Your photos make me so happy. Sorry to hear about the tick bits. But so worth it. I think these should be in a magazine.

Hugs~

Suzan said...

Have to back track this week--- has been long and difficult at school with several IEPs-
Amazing of the eagles. For the last couple of years we have watched the Decorah Eagles on a live web cam- but as of midweek- they have not visited the nest that the scientist rigged with a camera!! My students are bummed!!

Sallie (FullTime-Life) said...

I am in absolute awe! Stunning photos....love the baby. He's about at the same stage as the ones here in our neighborhood (which I'll be embarrassed to post now ;>) even if I get a picture!!). What a wonderful day of birding for you. I love this post.