Bald Eagle On Soldier's Grave...

magkelly · 05-27-2015, 10:02 AM

The power of this image it just blows me away. I was very touched by this...

Bald eagle perched atop a US soldier's grave photographed over Memorial weekend | Daily Mail Online

pete-tarmigan · 05-27-2015, 10:54 AM - **1 Like**

I wonder if I could train a Canada Goose to perch on a Canadian soldier's headstone.

Wolfeye · 05-27-2015, 11:48 AM - **2 Likes**

Call me a cynic, but if that isn't Photoshopped...

halfspin · 05-27-2015, 12:38 PM

According to Snopes, it's real.

**boriscleto** · 05-27-2015, 12:51 PM

A bird that would rather steal a meal than catch it itself...

Quote:

Franklin's Letter to His Daughter (excerpt)

"For my own part I wish the Bald Eagle had not been chosen the Representative of our Country. He is a Bird of bad moral Character. He does not get his Living honestly. You may have seen him perched on some dead Tree near the River, where, too lazy to fish for himself, he watches the Labour of the Fishing Hawk; and when that diligent Bird has at length taken a Fish, and is bearing it to his Nest for the Support of his Mate and young Ones, the Bald Eagle pursues him and takes it from him.

"With all this Injustice, he is never in good Case but like those among Men who live by Sharping & Robbing he is generally poor and often very lousy. Besides he is a rank Coward: The little King Bird not bigger than a Sparrow attacks him boldly and drives him out of the District. He is therefore by no means a proper Emblem for the brave and honest Cincinnati of America who have driven all the King birds from our Country...

"I am on this account not displeased that the Figure is not known as a Bald Eagle, but looks more like a Turkey. For the Truth the Turkey is in Comparison a much more respectable Bird, and withal a true original Native of America... He is besides, though a little vain & silly, a Bird of Courage, and would not hesitate to attack a Grenadier of the British Guards who should presume to invade his Farm Yard with a red Coat on."

]

Wolfeye · 05-27-2015, 01:10 PM

Originally posted by Wolfeye

Call me a cynic, but if that isn't Photoshopped...

Well, I know bald eagles are mainly found near rivers, eaters of dead fish. It'd be unusual, though not impossible, for one to land on a tombstone. It'd be more plausible to me if the photographer had baited it (dead fish maybe) and the cemetery was near a river.

BrianR · 05-27-2015, 01:59 PM

Originally posted by halfspin

According to Snopes, it's real.

The Snopes article seems to be utterly lacking in evidence snopes.com: The Eagle Has Landed. I don't count 'it was submitted by an amateur photographer and printed in a newspaper' as anything substantial.

Not that this means it's fake though. There's tons of speculation all over the web about whether it's real or not. Either way, it's a shame that photography has gotten to the point where even if you manage to pop off something rare and awesome, half the world accuses you of photo-shopping it instead of the good old fashioned ways of cheating (baiting, stuffed bird, superglue on photogenic perches, mind-control, etc.).

---------- Post added 05-27-15 at 05:03 PM ----------

Originally posted by boriscleto

A bird that would rather steal a meal than catch it itself...

Haha! I've always thought of baldies as grubby scavengers and not noble hunters. Always exciting to see one though

**pepperberry farm** · 05-27-2015, 02:24 PM - **2 Likes**

Originally posted by boriscleto

A bird that would rather steal a meal than catch it itself...

I find it odd that we attempt to ascribe any animals, aside from us, with morals...

they do what they do - survive....

sundr · 05-27-2015, 03:31 PM

The cemetery is adjacent to the Minnesota River and the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge. It's prime Bald Eagle habitat.

**hjoseph7** · 05-27-2015, 05:27 PM

It's not just a photograph it's a video check Huffington Post...

**Lowell Goudge** · 05-27-2015, 05:34 PM

Originally posted by pete-tarmigan

I wonder if I could train a Canada Goose to perch on a Canadian soldier's headstone.

I thought a seagull was the mascot of the Canadian forces

reeftool · 05-28-2015, 07:33 AM

It's not a likely place to find bald eagle. It could be a staged shot. There are various places around the country that have previously injured birds of prey that can no longer fly or hunt in the wild. This could be one of those birds. If the cemetery is near eagle habitat, it could be genuine. I saw one last summer perch on a light pole in downtown Lake George during a parade at a motorcycle rally. I was riding and couldn't get a shot.

magkelly · 05-28-2015, 06:07 PM

I have seen eagles in my backyard, sitting on the air conditioners, on the utility poles. There are even nesting pairs here. This scenario isn't all that unlikely. We do have a bayou and a boat dock. The bayou leads out to a bay. There's a lot of woods too so that's maybe why but it's not that unusual for them to be around. We have bald eagles, also brown eagles, osprey, big golden brown hawks of some type, owls, buzzards, pelicans, herons, and crows galore. There are times when I look over there and there are 2 or 3 big birds on the boat moorings. What we don't have is a lot of colorful birds like up north. I miss those. I hardly ever see any brightly colored birds except for Blue Jay's. Mostly it's just jays of various types, various little brown birds, doves and pigeons. If it wasn't for the big birds showing up I'd not do much bird photography here...

05-27-2015, 10:02 AM	#1
magkelly Veteran Member Join Date: May 2010 Photos: Gallery Posts: 5,901	Bald Eagle On Soldier's Grave... The power of this image it just blows me away. I was very touched by this... Bald eagle perched atop a US soldier's grave photographed over Memorial weekend \| Daily Mail Online

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05-27-2015, 10:54 AM - 1 Like	#2
pete-tarmigan Veteran Member Join Date: Apr 2009 Location: Conception Bay South, New-fun-land Photos: Gallery Posts: 1,272	I wonder if I could train a Canada Goose to perch on a Canadian soldier's headstone.

05-27-2015, 11:48 AM - 2 Likes	#3
Wolfeye Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2013 Photos: Albums Posts: 782	Call me a cynic, but if that isn't Photoshopped...

05-27-2015, 12:38 PM	#4
halfspin Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2012 Photos: Gallery Posts: 258	According to Snopes, it's real.

05-27-2015, 12:51 PM	#5
boriscleto Loyal Site Supporter Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: North Syracuse, NY Photos: Gallery Posts: 16,475	A bird that would rather steal a meal than catch it itself... Quote: Franklin's Letter to His Daughter (excerpt) "For my own part I wish the Bald Eagle had not been chosen the Representative of our Country. He is a Bird of bad moral Character. He does not get his Living honestly. You may have seen him perched on some dead Tree near the River, where, too lazy to fish for himself, he watches the Labour of the Fishing Hawk; and when that diligent Bird has at length taken a Fish, and is bearing it to his Nest for the Support of his Mate and young Ones, the Bald Eagle pursues him and takes it from him. "With all this Injustice, he is never in good Case but like those among Men who live by Sharping & Robbing he is generally poor and often very lousy. Besides he is a rank Coward: The little King Bird not bigger than a Sparrow attacks him boldly and drives him out of the District. He is therefore by no means a proper Emblem for the brave and honest Cincinnati of America who have driven all the King birds from our Country... "I am on this account not displeased that the Figure is not known as a Bald Eagle, but looks more like a Turkey. For the Truth the Turkey is in Comparison a much more respectable Bird, and withal a true original Native of America... He is besides, though a little vain & silly, a Bird of Courage, and would not hesitate to attack a Grenadier of the British Guards who should presume to invade his Farm Yard with a red Coat on." ]

05-27-2015, 01:10 PM	#6
Wolfeye Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2013 Photos: Albums Posts: 782	Originally posted by Wolfeye Call me a cynic, but if that isn't Photoshopped... Well, I know bald eagles are mainly found near rivers, eaters of dead fish. It'd be unusual, though not impossible, for one to land on a tombstone. It'd be more plausible to me if the photographer had baited it (dead fish maybe) and the cemetery was near a river.

05-27-2015, 01:59 PM	#7
BrianR Veteran Member Join Date: Dec 2010 Location: Ontario Photos: Gallery Posts: 3,332	Originally posted by halfspin According to Snopes, it's real. The Snopes article seems to be utterly lacking in evidence snopes.com: The Eagle Has Landed. I don't count 'it was submitted by an amateur photographer and printed in a newspaper' as anything substantial. Not that this means it's fake though. There's tons of speculation all over the web about whether it's real or not. Either way, it's a shame that photography has gotten to the point where even if you manage to pop off something rare and awesome, half the world accuses you of photo-shopping it instead of the good old fashioned ways of cheating (baiting, stuffed bird, superglue on photogenic perches, mind-control, etc.). ---------- Post added 05-27-15 at 05:03 PM ---------- Originally posted by boriscleto A bird that would rather steal a meal than catch it itself... Haha! I've always thought of baldies as grubby scavengers and not noble hunters. Always exciting to see one though

05-27-2015, 02:24 PM - 2 Likes	#8
pepperberry farm amateur dirt farmer Join Date: Dec 2014 Location: probably out in a field somewhere... Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 41,643	Originally posted by boriscleto A bird that would rather steal a meal than catch it itself... I find it odd that we attempt to ascribe any animals, aside from us, with morals... they do what they do - survive....

05-27-2015, 03:31 PM	#9
sundr Senior Member Join Date: Jun 2012 Location: St. Paul, Minnesota Photos: Gallery Posts: 123	The cemetery is adjacent to the Minnesota River and the Minnesota Valley National Wildlife Refuge. It's prime Bald Eagle habitat.

05-27-2015, 05:27 PM	#10
hjoseph7 Site Supporter Join Date: May 2014 Location: Minnesota Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 2,046	It's not just a photograph it's a video check Huffington Post...

05-27-2015, 05:34 PM	#11
Lowell Goudge Site Supporter Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: Toronto Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 17,886	Originally posted by pete-tarmigan I wonder if I could train a Canada Goose to perch on a Canadian soldier's headstone. I thought a seagull was the mascot of the Canadian forces

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05-28-2015, 07:33 AM	#12
reeftool Pentaxian Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Upstate New York Photos: Gallery \| Albums Posts: 9,553	It's not a likely place to find bald eagle. It could be a staged shot. There are various places around the country that have previously injured birds of prey that can no longer fly or hunt in the wild. This could be one of those birds. If the cemetery is near eagle habitat, it could be genuine. I saw one last summer perch on a light pole in downtown Lake George during a parade at a motorcycle rally. I was riding and couldn't get a shot.

05-28-2015, 06:07 PM	#13
magkelly Veteran Member Join Date: May 2010 Photos: Gallery Posts: 5,901 Original Poster	I have seen eagles in my backyard, sitting on the air conditioners, on the utility poles. There are even nesting pairs here. This scenario isn't all that unlikely. We do have a bayou and a boat dock. The bayou leads out to a bay. There's a lot of woods too so that's maybe why but it's not that unusual for them to be around. We have bald eagles, also brown eagles, osprey, big golden brown hawks of some type, owls, buzzards, pelicans, herons, and crows galore. There are times when I look over there and there are 2 or 3 big birds on the boat moorings. What we don't have is a lot of colorful birds like up north. I miss those. I hardly ever see any brightly colored birds except for Blue Jay's. Mostly it's just jays of various types, various little brown birds, doves and pigeons. If it wasn't for the big birds showing up I'd not do much bird photography here...