You may have seen one of the many breathtaking photographs of a bald eagle diving into the water and catching a fish. However, what happens when that fish is just a little too large for the eagle to gracefully fly away with? As the video at the bottom of this page will show, sometimes, eagles will need to get creative when they’ve bit off more than they can chew.
In the video, you can see a bald eagle submerged in the water a few feet away from the shore. The bird is flapping its wings, but it isn’t flying. Instead, this bald eagle is swimming! While it may appear as if it is struggling, though, it isn’t for reasons you may think. As it reaches the shallow water at the shore, the eagle becomes airborne and reveals that it is dragging something to shore. On the shore, you can see the fruit of the eagle’s labor: a large fish.
Are Eagles Good Swimmers?
©Michael Tatman/Shutterstock.com
When you first think of a bald eagle, you most likely don’t consider them to be strong swimmers. And, while it is true that bald eagles aren’t the most graceful swimmers, as you may have noticed in the video below, they do possess the ability to swim.
Bald eagles have a widely diverse diet, with fish and waterfowl often making up a large portion of it. On average, they can lift prey that weighs three to four pounds. When you look at the food that these eagles eat, most of their prey falls into this range, if not well below their threshold. However, occasionally, the bald eagle may underestimate how large a fish or bird is prior to catching it. This means that their only two options are to swim or give up their prey.
Now, if an eagle is in the middle of a lake, it may opt for the latter. However, if it is close to shore, as the eagle in the video is, then they can use their wings to propel their bodies forward, an awkward but effective method of swimming.
Bald eagles also have a thick down coat beneath their tell-tale white and brown feathers. Like with waterfowl, this down gives them a sort of buoyancy that allows them to float. This down coat can also protect them while on the water, helping water to escape their plumage rather than cause it to become waterlogged and heavy.
Watch The Amazing Video Below
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August 06, 2023 at 03:13AM
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See a Bald Eagle Improvise After Catching a Fish Too Large to Fly With - AZ Animals
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