Comments
Faerhun t1_j4oytbb wrote
Saw and got pictures, that's awesome. Nice job!
thestateisgreen t1_j4ozeal wrote
I often see a bald eagle on route 116 when I drive home in the mornings. It’s so majestic! But this morning I saw a huge predatory bird that I initially thought was an osprey but it was much larger and darker. I’m wondering if it might have been a golden eagle now! Very cool. I see the most amazing birds on my drive home. Eagles, blue herons, barred owls. Lovermont!
Intelligent-Hunt7557 t1_j4pchyk wrote
Was it by the swamp? We are a mile or two distant and have the sandhill cranes feeding in our fields most of the year…
Moto_919 t1_j4pdwc1 wrote
Im pretty sure i saw a pair of them flying down the lake last year when i was on the Colchester causeway. At first i thought they were some osprey but as they got closer i could see they were much much larger then osprey and for sure were not bald eagles.
I have a couple pics but from a distance and its hard to really tell even if you zoom right in.
effinx t1_j4pfgee wrote
My favorite type of eagle!
RamaSchneider t1_j4pig33 wrote
Had a pair of Golden Eagles stop by the property once ... about 30 years ago. Absolutely majestic and HUGE. I swear the male stood almost as tall as 5' 10" me.
Illecebrous-Pundit t1_j4pp3bm wrote
Wow! Amazing!
Rich_Depth7314 t1_j4pp8vh wrote
Fantastic sighting! There are only a few thousand golden eagles in eastern North America total. That means your find is an important data point for an uncommon species - please consider submitting this sighting to eBird.org, a open access bird database run by Cornell and used for research projects around the globe.
Rich_Depth7314 t1_j4pph11 wrote
Your bird here is showing more white in the wing and underneath than a golden eagle does. It does look good for an osprey though, and they have almost the same wingspan (5ft, vs 6 for an eagle) - very large birds themselves. Golden Eagles trend to travel solo too, tho there are exceptions.
somedudevt t1_j4psyg1 wrote
There are several juvenile bald eagles on carmi and fairfield pond. Hard at a distance to distinguish them from a gold eagle as they are patterned similarly. Hate to say that’s more likely, but seems more likely especially given the area, and the number of bald eagles in that area. Tail pattern does say golden, but also says juvenile bald.
If anyone is looking for the bald eagles on carmi they nest on the tallest pine tree 100yds south of the island on the west side of the lake. They also frequent the tallest pine tree on the southern point, and a pine tree on the east shore just north of the state park.
Fairfield they like to sit in the tree off the first point on the north end
Evan_802Vines t1_j4px3ut wrote
r/birding
polychrotid t1_j4py2k3 wrote
any word if it's still around today? I might drive up there for a look.
texmarie t1_j4pyfuf wrote
It’s so huge!
Alex6095 OP t1_j4q2qoi wrote
I doubt it, I think he might have been snacking on some frozen carcass on the side of the road, but when I drove past he got spooked and flew off. I turned around as fast as I could but these were the only photos I got!
Alex6095 OP t1_j4q2y9c wrote
Fairfield is chock full of wildlife, I've already seen 2 owls, tons of deer, plenty of other raptors, and now this guy!
Alex6095 OP t1_j4q352l wrote
He was between where I take a left off of Buck Hollow and the Fairfield town center, not sure exactly where
-PineMarten t1_j4qbzt2 wrote
I gather VT fish and wildlife would love to have this data if you can report it! :)! Great sighting
akmjolnir t1_j4qcun0 wrote
How do you differentiate between a golden eagle and a juvenile bald eagle?
I see tons of bald eagles (juvenile and mature) along the CT River from Springfield, VT up past Lyme, NH.
Alex6095 OP t1_j4qoyr5 wrote
The folks at r/birding said the solid white stripe on the tail, and the white under the wings help differentiate
JoeKnotbush t1_j4qpan1 wrote
Hmm, I bet this is an immature bald, this time of year is when second year Bald eagles begin to morph and the under tail looking so white from the base of the tail is indicative of that. Not saying it isn't cuz it's hard to tell from the photos but given there are a lot of balds in that area, my vote is still immature bald. Nice catch on the camera though!
minkjet t1_j4quzgs wrote
Saw a bald eagle in January of 2021 off the side of Law Island.
akmjolnir t1_j4qvtip wrote
Interesting!
ripiss t1_j4qx5t4 wrote
One time we were coming back from somewhere up near Lyndonville on 91 and saw a bald eagle sitting on top of a dead deer
Moto_919 t1_j4r1p9s wrote
Yeah i see bald eagles fairly regularly In the Colchester/Burlington area the last few years. Must be a nest somewhere in the area.
Got this picture on north avenue a couple years ago
smellyshellybelly t1_j4ri2ak wrote
I've seen them sitting along the highway between Milton and Winooski.
jsudarskyvt t1_j4rkgum wrote
Most likely these are immature Bald Eagles. They have these colorings before they mature and the distinctive white feathers grow into place.
Mmmmffffeeerrrr t1_j4rre9w wrote
I thought I saw two osprey soaring above my south Burlington home… I wonder if it was a golden eagle. They were huge
findingNemoral t1_j4uprbl wrote
A rather large bird took off in front of me while driving (we scared the shit out of each other) and for about 30 seconds it pumped its wings to clear my truck while I slammed on the breaks. I got a really good look at it - wing span covered the width of my vehicle (easily) and its markings and colorations were not Bald Eagle (mature or immature) and the only bird that it could have been was a Golden Eagle. Since those are so rare, I doubt myself...but I am convinced that 2 mph faster or the bird slightly less masterful at flying, I would have seriously maimed it.
This was in Monkton, off of Tyler Bridge Road and it had been eating near the fire pond.
Longjumping_Vast_797 t1_j5eg6ov wrote
Check their range, it's just west of champlain. I had one feasting on my chickens all 2021, and that's exactly what I identified!
Cobdain t1_j4ojzbe wrote
Super cool!! They do pass through on rare occasions, nice sighting