Two bald eagles lock talons crash land

TrackerSam

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There was a crash landing Sunday at the Duluth International Airport, but it didn’t involve airplanes. Rather, it was two bald eagles, which were fighting in midair when they locked talons. In a rare spectacle of nature, they were unable to disengage in time before crashing to the runway.

“Apparently, mature eagles will sometimes fight over territories,” Randy Hanzal, a Minnesota conservation officer, told GrindTV in an email. “They will do battle in the air, crashing into each other and grabbing an intruding eagle with their talons.

“Usually, they will let go of each other before hitting the ground, but in this case, they had the talons so deeply imbedded in each other they may have been unable to let go.”

Hanzal was the one who was called in to collect the birds and deliver them to Wildwoods, a wildlife rehabilitation center in Duluth.

“Surprisingly, the two eagles were remarkably calm as I grabbed them both and loaded them into the back of my truck,” Hanzal said. “I think they were still more intent on winning the battle than any concern for me.”

http://www.grindtv.com/outdoor/nature/post/two-bald-eagles-in-air-battle-crash-land-at-airport/
 
That's actually a mating rituall that many birds do only more often then not they time it just perfect so they can let go just before hitting the ground..
 
That's actually a mating rituall that many birds do only more often then not they time it just perfect so they can let go just before hitting the ground..

Don't really know much about them. The article claims they were both males in a territorial dispute. Is there a visible difference between the males and females?
 
I think the poster just meant the same thing sometimes happens to mating pairs. In THIS case, animal workers seemed clear that both birds were mails. (And, yes, most species of birds have different markings for males and females. It's how the birds themselves tell one another apart.)
 
I meant visible differences......without having to, you know, poke around and get all up into their business. :floorlaugh:
 
In so.Fla. there's a little black duck, red beak, and both male and female are identicle. They're very cute, and the adults are about the size of a tennis ball. The chicks are also black and they're really cute, about the size of a golf ball. I don't know what they are but it's fascinating watching those chicks bob up and down on the waves like old pros.
 
Sam, I assume you know the meaning of the word "most". I said most birds have markings indicating gender (without "getting up into their business").

This is probably because most (again "most", not "all") avian species have no sense of smell or a poor one. Without visible clues, their courting would be problematic.

http://www.stanford.edu/group/stanfordbirds/text/essays/Avian_Sense.html
 

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