Farmington Bay bald eagles

[hcraighall]

Has anyone been out there to see if the bald eagles have arrived? Last year, I believe the peak time was the first and second week of February. But with the relatively warmer weather, maybe they are there already?

Anyone know what the status is? Thanks.

[stefan]

i dunno ... but how 'bout another round of jaw-dropping revisits to one of the best bogley threads EVER?!!

http://bogley.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=95838

truly inspiring, dan :2thumbs:

[blueeyes]

Stefan thanks for reposting... those were amazing shots! I am going to have to grab my mom and kids and head out there.

[rwpontius]

I was out at Farmington Bay yesterday to see if there was any eagle activity. There were a few eagles around but it did not look like the carp have been poisoned yet. Certainly no fishing activity. I was there around 2:00 PM. Pretty good ice cover yesterday though.
RP

[Redpb]

Keep us posted. I'd like to make it out there when they come in. Hopefully on a Saturday afternoon... that's about my only free time.

[rooster32]

Whats the best time of the day to catch the eagles feeding?

I saw some info that said later afternoon is when they come back to the area to roost....

They are going to poison the carp some day this week. It has not been done yet. They were out banding waterfowl today.....

[rwpontius]

I was at Farmington Bay yesterday late afternoon/evening. Plenty of eagles perched on the ice way too far away to consider photographing. I was told by another photographer that carp were poisoned yesterday but not in the large impoundment east of the access road. I guess it was a different area. Not many eagles flying around. I saw no owls and ended up taking some pied billed grebe photos as well as some shots of a large flock of swans against the mountains. Oh, plenty of harriers there as always. In general, I was disappointed compared to last year. Hopefully it will get better in the coming weeks.
RP

[KapitanSparrow]

I saw a bald eagle the other day over Decker Lake :2thumbs:

[rooster32]

I spoke with Jay (who does the poisoning) yesterday and they just started to poison the carp. He said it can take 24 hr and longer for the bigger carp to die. I think they are going to continue poisoning the ponds this week. Not sure if they try to hold off till right before the official eagle viewing day out there on the 14th.

Ran out there today. Probably 30 or so eagles. Open water is a ways out and the birds are hanging a few 100yrds away as already posted. Used my 200-400 with 1.7TC...but still not enough reach for most of the birds. Some fish to be had, but not many. Need more fish, eagles, open water and no smog!

http://arappl.smugmug.com/photos/468282420_BTRTd-L.jpg

[tmartenst]

Anyone been out there to see what's happening?

[PhotoHound]

I went out there on Saturday afternoon. The water was much more open than last year at this time, so the eagles were much further out on the ice (~100 yards). There was probably 30 or so in the area. It seemed like they were much more active around 1pm, less so at 2pm, and hardly active at all around 3pm. I left around 4pm, as they were still hardly active and the clouds started moving in. I didn't get any shots that I thought were any good; all would have to be heavily cropped, and that is at 560mm (400mm + 1.4x tc)...

http://photohound.smugmug.com/photos/470649077_hQryF-L.jpg

[waltny]

Lighting was HORRIBLE over the weekend, and thats not to mention how far out they eagles were. Im beginning to thinkin that without a naked 500-600mm your not even in the ballpark. Here are a few that I got that were half way decent from last weekend.

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/eagle.jpg

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/eagle2.jpg

Hawk
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/hawk.jpg

Last year
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/DSC_3766copy.jpg

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/DSC_3816copy.jpg

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/DSC_3819copy.jpg

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/DSC_3846copy.jpg

[tmartenst]

Great shots. I am going to see what the weather looks like on Sunday. Looks like clouds and snow is in the forecast for a few days.

[waltny]

Ill be out there Sunday afternoon for a while.

Here are a few more different shots from this year.
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/pelican1.jpg

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/pelican2.jpg

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/pelican3.jpg

[waltny]

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/DSC_8286copy.jpg

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/DSC_8178copy.jpg

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/DSC_8180copy.jpg

[waltny]

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/DSC_8286copy.jpg

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/DSC_8178copy.jpg

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/DSC_8180copy.jpg

[waltny]

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/DSC_8163copy.jpg

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/DSC_8204copy.jpg

[waltny]

lastly, the only eagle keepers from today

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/DSC_8249copy.jpg

http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/DSC_8251.jpg

This one poses the infamous question...
http://i164.photobucket.com/albums/u25/waltny/DSC_8235copy.jpg

[tmartenst]

So if those are the only eagle keepers from yesterday, does that mean that they are still far out on the water or that they are just not there or active? Are the barn owls there? Debating whether to go out there Sunday or Monday (need to rent some gear) or to enjoy the powder like I did today.

[waltny]

So if those are the only eagle keepers from yesterday, does that mean that they are still far out on the water or that they are just not there or active? Are the barn owls there? Debating whether to go out there Sunday or Monday (need to rent some gear) or to enjoy the powder like I did today.

Considering all Ive got is limited time and 300mm to work with, yeah they were the only ones I could really salavage. Early morning is the best(esp. if it ices back over at night) and late afternoon. Otherwise they are scattered and you really need a min of 500 to 600 to reach out and touch them. I havent seen the barn owl this year, or the short ear either. Plenty of Harriers and Krestels and as you can see there are a few other opps to get other birds. Its a toss up, but I do know that within the next 2 weeks they will start to move on...

[PhotoHound]

Hey guys, quick tip - drive to the end. That's where the best viewing is right now :popcorn:, all the way down (southern extent) of the dike road. Lots of dead carp over there, which of course means more raptors. Eagles and hawks galore! :eek2: I believe they are most active in the morning - happy shooting!

http://photohound.smugmug.com/photos/474444048_UDDJ2-L.jpg

http://photohound.smugmug.com/photos/474441978_9vQtU-L.jpg

http://photohound.smugmug.com/photos/474443813_ZhLdo-L.jpg


and other avians in the area, mostly at/around the first bridge:

What kind of pelican are these? :ne_nau: ???

http://photohound.smugmug.com/photos/474441631_a7DUv-L.jpg

http://photohound.smugmug.com/photos/474441590_Z4JyS-L.jpg


lots of kestrels on the road in:

http://photohound.smugmug.com/photos/474444101_jMckF-L.jpg


and here's one I got in my front yard - if anyone can tell me what it is called I'd be obliged!

http://photohound.smugmug.com/photos/474441670_mpFfg-L.jpg