Eagle Harasses Big Buck

[BrowningRage]

Just found this video- thought it was pretty cool, besides the large buck... It begs the question, if you can hunt upland game with a falcon- why not deer with an eagle...?? LOL

"Therefore, wo be unto him that is at ease in Zion!" 2 Ne. 28: 24

 

[TOPGUN]

The neater video was the following one where that eagle took that lamb right off the cliff for a long ride down into that canyon for an eventiual meal!

 

[sageadvice]

Nice Frame on that Muley!

Who needs pepper spray when you got bird...

Joey

 

[nebo12000]

LAST EDITED ON Jul-20-11 AT 10:18AM (MST)[p]LAST EDITED ON Jul-20-11 AT 10:17?AM (MST)

A number of years ago I was trying to video some small bucks at about 11,000 ft on Nebo. A small 20" 4x4 was making his way up through some steep ledges. As I was videoing a Golden Eagle dive bombed him and it looked as though it hit the buck right on the back with its talons. The buck almost did a somersault and for a second I thought he was going to tumble off the ledge, but he gained his balance and headed straight down off the ledges he was in and got to a safer place. I kind of assumed that maybe the buck was getting near the eagles nesting area but it might have just been trying to tip the buck over and cause it to tumble off the ledge and then have a meal for a few days. It was interesting to see happen.

 

[BIGJOHNT]

LAST EDITED ON Jul-20-11 AT 10:31AM (MST)[p]I was hunting a LE deer unit. A big golden eagle caught my eye. When I looked closer it was messing with a 28 inch 3 x 3 . The buck was sneeking up one of the draws of the canyon and the eagle gave him up. I would have shot him but he was only a big 3 x 3 . The reason I know how wide he was....is there was a guy from up north hunting the same area. He found that buck on the fifith day of the hunt. His horns where hangen on the side of his horse trailer.

 

[nontypical]

Eagles for sure kill deer,especially fawns-a lot more than people realize.I would go so far as to say in some areas,eagles could be the most efficient predator there,killing more fawns than any other predator.There is a good chance the eagle attacking the buck in the cliffs was trying to get him to fall to his death so he could feed on the carcass-a tactic that he may have come across accidentally for the first time,and used successfully since.

 

[rmanwill]

Interesting. Thanks for sharing.

 

[ICMDEER]

NONTYPICAL is right on, as usual. I've seen eagles kill both deer and antelope. Eagles are big-time athletes. They ususally fly down and hit an ungulate right at the base of the neck. If there's a pair of goldens, they will take turns gaining altitude and dropping down to "hammer" a yearling or fawn. Eventually, the eagles will weaken or blind the deer/antelope by raking their talons. Then the deer/antelope is done and the eagle will use its beak to reach in and severe the spinal cord.

I've even watched coyotes and foxes that follow eagles looking for a meal. After an eagle makes a kill, the canids will hang around, fight and get something to eat.

I'd say this is all part of what I call the "hierarchy of predation" and is one of the prime reasons we have fewer deer (and rabbits) than there were 40-50 years ago. There are a LOT more predators of various sorts and sizes. Additionally, with more hawks, owls and eagles, they eat more of the small rodents and rabbits, which forces the coyotes and lions to eat more deer.

 

[eldorado]

Great looking buck. Thanks for posting.

Eldorado

 

[nontypical]

Great points,Jim.When you consider all that predation and couple it with habitat loss and degradation,it's no wonder our deer herds are struggling.Red foxes were very rare,if not completely absent from sw Wy 40 yrs ago.Now they are a fairly common sighting,and the numbers of ravens has also risen dramatically.