Great Story and Great Photos! Don Carrier _____ From: bcbirdclub-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx [mailto:bcbirdclub-bounce@xxxxxxxxxxxxx] On Behalf Of Thomas Hunter Sent: Wednesday, February 11, 2009 6:45 PM To: bristol-birds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx; buchanan co bc; virginia birds Subject: [bcbirdclub] Golden Eagle and Common Raven Dogfight Part II Several weeks ago I described an encounter between Common Ravens and Golden Eagles that did not appear to be very serious. The scene that I witnessed today was entirely different. While birding the Cove Road area in Tazewell County(SiteMMH08 Va Birding & Wildlife Trail, Mountain Section) I stopped to chase some sparrows from one side of the road to the other. There was a group of 50+ Crows and 10+ Common Ravens making a lot of noise on the hillside next to the road. They appeared to be taking turns mobbing each other. I scanned the hill and discovered an immature Golden Eagle with 2 Common Ravens in hot pursuit. The Golden Eagle landed on the ridgeline and before I could get my scope out and focused there were 7 Common Ravens sitting beside the Eagle. When the Eagle lifted off the Ravens resumed their atack. They would take turns with 3 or 4 diving and the others soaring nearby. The Eagle tried to land in a tree and the Ravens went after him while it was on it's perch. The Eagle finally went out of sight over the hill after taking a heavy pounding. I took some long distance photos just to document the scene. The first gives you some idea of the distance even with a 400mm lens. The photos are at the following link: http://www.pbase.com/opiehunter/eagle_and_raven_encounter I have also included some other photos taken today: http://www.pbase.com/opiehunter/february_birds Tom & Laverne Hunter Russell County Bird Club Lebanon, VA