They say don't judge a book by its cover. and you probably shouldn't judge a fierce raptor, like the American Bald Eagle by its war cry either.

There's no visual quite as majestic as watching our nation's symbol come swooping down. However have you ever heard one?  You probably wouldn't identify the sound you hear with what you see. It's not as annoying as say Bobcat Goldthwaite or Gilbert Gottfried, but the mighty eagle does sound more like Tweety Bird than the war cry heard in by the birds from "The Lord of the Rings" movies.

William Straite, our wildlife photographer who so graciously shares his stunning work with us, has more Eagle tales for us this week. We have taken to calling him our Eagle Expert, but he says experts, "are people who drive fifty miles, charge you fifty dollars for something you'll never need to know." So, we'll call him our "Eagle Guy" from now on.

He captured these photos of the birds in full vocal mode as they declared dominance over food.

William also captured the sounds as the battle raged, he then combined the photos with the natural sounds of Adirondack Mountains in New York. Give it a listen below.

 

Have You Noticed More Eagles than Usual Along the Black River? Here's Why.

If you live or travel along the Black River there may seem to be an unusual amount of Eagles congregating together. Why? Who better to ask than our wildlife photog and eagle expert, William Straite.

Even William admits to seeing more of the majestic birds than usual. On a recent outing he stopped counting at forty-four of them sitting in two trees.

One came down out of the trees, started eating, let out a yelp, and then I never imagined witnessing what I did.

During the summer months there are plenty of places for eagles to nest and find food. But with most of the northeast stuck in this polar vortex, so much of the Black River is frozen, eagles now have a shortage of perching spots and fishing holes.  William says while they still use their primary nests, now they forage for dead deer hit by cars or any other animals they can find. It's become somewhat of "survival of the fittest" when it comes to feasting on food, with William even witnessing an Eagle snatch a bluebird in his back yard.

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William captured some amazing photos as the battle raged over the carcass of a dead deer. And when a man who has shot wildlife photography since he was a teenager calls them, "something I will probably never witness to this extent again," amazing falls short of being an apt description. Check them out below.

Central New York Eagles Fighting For Food

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