[wolfbirder]

Just seen a fascinating duel between these species for dying salmon on "Wild Russia" currently showing on Sky 528.

We know that Golden Eagles tend to dominate WT Eagles due to their aggressive nature, but I was surprised to see a Goldie see off a huge Stellars Eagle in what was a vicious fight over a salmon brought out onto the ice. The two birds tangled on the ground for a while but the Goldie with its weaker bill but strong talons eventually saw off the bigger but clearly intimidated Stellar's Eagle. This outcome was certainly not unsual according to the programme.

Great to watch! But surprised at the dominance of the Goldie.

[Pugs1]

That's interesting. Rumour here in the UK is that WTSE is the more dominant species and there was talk on WTSE ousting Golden Eagles from breeding territories. Perhaps Goldies are more dominant whilst at carcasses but not whilst establishing breeding ranges...great potential there

It is known in North America that the Goldie is dominant over the Bald Eagle, who in comparison is a bit of a docile creature.

[wolfbirder]

The large number of WT Eagles were fighting amongst themselves on the clip but certainly were respectful of the 3-4 Goldies. It was a Stellars that initially flew in to the Goldies to claim the fish but after a vicious fight with a Goldie it backed off and scarpered in a quite humiliating fashion.

Great clip and a shame I can't upload it.

[John Dracon]

Here in Montana, U.S.A., we have both the bald and golden eagles. While the bird books list the bald as the larger of the two species, the golden seems larger and is certainly more agressive when the two are occasionally seen together. Many deer are killed on highways here, and scavengers of all stripes move in to feed. The golden eagle will attack mammals as large as deer and antelope. I have witnessed several such attacks that were successful. The eagles will come in from the rear and land on the neck and sink their talons causing paralysis. Newly born lambs are particularly vulnerable to golden eagle attacks. The sheep men used to kill them on sight, but of course today they enjoy federal protection. By law only American Indians can be in possession of golden eagle tail feathers which are used for ceremonial bonnets.

[scuba0095]

http://svtplay.se/v/2134923/det_vild...nd_-_kamtjatka



that is trhe video but i dont see any white tailed sea eagles

[wolfbirder]

Originally Posted by scuba0095

http://svtplay.se/v/2134923/det_vild...nd_-_kamtjatka



that is trhe video but i dont see any white tailed sea eagles

Sorry I may have got it wrong as i was watching it initially with no sound but i thought most of the birds sitting around & not involved in the fight were WT Eagles but looks like they are all Steller's.

Thanks for downloading it tho, it shows the vicious battle between Goldie & Steller. A superb piece of footage. Thanks again Scuba.

[HokkaidoStu]

Wow, great footage there.

I too only saw Stellers and Goldens in that video though.

In Hokkaido we have all 3 species although the Golden is very rare. One thing I've noticed is that the White Tailed seems to dominate the Stellers. Several times I've seen them drive off Stellers. Here is an example from last year. Not quite as dramatic as the video linked above I'm sorry to say.............

The toughest of them all seems to be the Mountain Hawk Eagle. When the Stellers and White tailed Eagles feast on salmon they are always attended by lots of crows who harass them mercilessly but when the Hawk Eagle comes down the crows and everything else stay well away.

[Irish Kite]

Originally Posted by HokkaidoStu

In Hokkaido we have all 3 species al

Lucky sod!! - something like that might just tempt me to fly all that way

[stuartelsom]

We did in Jan 09 - and boy was it fantastic!

See attached

[ed keeble]

Originally Posted by HokkaidoStu

One thing I've noticed is that the White Tailed seems to dominate the Stellers. Several times I've seen them drive off Stellers. Here is an example from last year. Not quite as dramatic as the video linked above I'm sorry to say.............

That's intriguing- one factor may be that Steller's feed incredibly quickly, so once they have been on a fish for more than few minutes, it might be less trouble for them to back off than have a fight with a W-t E. Estimates here from a Russian researcher based on field observations (I don't know how accurate or what sort of sample, but it gives an idea):

Steller's: 900g of fish in 3-4 minutes; W-t Eagle: 900g of fish in 18 minutes; G Eagle 900g of fish in 28 minutes.

[HokkaidoStu]

Originally Posted by ed keeble

Steller's: 900g of fish in 3-4 minutes; W-t Eagle: 900g of fish in 18 minutes; G Eagle 900g of fish in 28 minutes.

Wow that big yellow beak isn't just for decoration then!

[Daniel Martin]

Originally Posted by scuba0095

http://svtplay.se/v/2134923/det_vild...nd_-_kamtjatka



that is trhe video but i dont see any white tailed sea eagles

Fantastic - thanks for sharing Scuba. My two young sons will love this - Eagles are a huge favourite! I took them down to the Andover Hawk Conservancy Trust a few years ago simply because they had received two young Stellers. Wonderful day!

I wonder how many of these scraps end up with fatalities??

[sandhillsam]

One problem...I searched for the "eagles fighting video" and viewed the version on both animal planet website and youtube and (unless I have the wrong video, the link above didn't work) there is no Golden Eagle in this video. The bird who comes away with the food is a young Steller's, it is all all black with the signature huge yellow bill. Even the animal planet link on google states that it is a golden eagle vs Steller's battle. Sorry