John Baker
Final Approach
- Joined
- Oct 4, 2008
- Messages
- 7,471
- Location
- San Diego, California
- Display Name
Display name:
John Baker
This came from a gent who runs a 2000 acre corn farm up around Barron WI,
not far from Oshkosh. He used to fly F4Es and F-16s for the Guard and
participated in the first Gulf War... It is submitted for your enjoyment,
and as a reminder that there are other great, magnificent flyers around
(besides us).
I went out to plant corn for a bit to finish a field before tomorrow morning
and witnessed The Great Battle. A golden eagle - big bastard, about six foot
wingspan - flew right in front of the tractor. It was being chased by three
crows that were continually dive bombing it and pecking at it. Crows do this
because the eagles rob their nests when they find them.
At any rate, the eagle banked hard right in one evasive maneuver, then
landed in the field about 100 feet from the tractor. This eagle stood about
3 feet tall. The crows all landed too and took up positions around the eagle
at 120 degrees apart, but kept their distance at about 20 feet from the big
bird. The eagle would take a couple steps towards one of the crows and
they'd hop backwards and forward to keep their distance. Then the
reinforcements showed up. I happened to spot the eagle's mate hurtling down
out of the sky at what appeared to be approximately Mach 1.5.
Just before impact the eagle on the ground took flight, and the three crows
which were watching the grounded eagle, also took flight thinking they were
going to get in some more pecking on the big bird. The first crow being
targeted by the diving eagle never stood a snowball's chance in hell. There
was a mid-air explosion of black feathers and that crow was done. The diving
eagle then banked hard left in what had to be a 9G climbing turn, using the
energy it had accumulated in the dive, and hit crow #2 less than two seconds
later. Another crow dead.
The grounded eagle, which was now airborne and had an altitude advantage on
the remaining crow, which was streaking eastward in full burner, made a
short dive then banked hard right when the escaping crow tried to evade the
hit. It didn't work - crow #3 bit the dust at about 20 feet altitude. This
aerial battle was better than any air show I've been to, including the
warbirds show at Oshkosh!
The two eagles ripped the crows apart and ate them on the ground, and as I
got closer and closer working my way across the field, I passed within 20
feet of one of them as it ate its catch. It stopped and looked at me as I
went by and you could see in the look of that bird that it knew who's Boss
Of The Sky. What a beautiful bird!
I love it. Not only did they kill their enemy, they ate them.
========================================================
John
