Birds are surely amazing creatures. They lift your heart up as they soar in the sky, all the while you're stuck indoors because of COVID-19 lockdown.?
And some birds take this up a notch by showcasing their sheer hunting skills -- spotting their prey from miles above in the sky and grabbing them in a swift move.?
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We found a video that has crossed over a million views on Twitter shared by writer/director Jay Arnold that involves an eagle showcasing this very trait. The bird in the video is shown flying in slow motion. In the beginning, you don’t notice something striking except its really ginormous wings flapping in slow motion.?
However, in a few seconds, you see one of the people on the boat throw a fish in the air right below the bird flying and the eagle instantly changes its trajectory to grab the fish mid-air. Words don’t do justice to the capturing action of the fish and the result is truly jaw-dropping.?
Looking at the size of the bird and the icy cold mountain in the background, this eagle could very well be a Steller’s sea eagle. According to Wikipedia, These are one of the largest eagles in the world, and by extension, one of the heaviest too, weighing a good 5 to 9 kilograms.
The wingspan can stretch from 1.95 metres to 2.5 metres, and in case you didn’t know, that’s massive. They’re known to possess a yellow bill with 12 rectrices -- feathers in the tail to help the birds manoeuvre-- a trait unique to this species. This is also seen on the bird in the video.?
Their diet mostly consists of fishes with their favourite ones being salmon and trout -- in case they’re from a river habitat. They mostly prey on fishes weighing up to 2.2 to 5 kilograms.?
Their preference is hunting fish in shallow water. However, they’re also known to hunt from a tree or rocky ledge above the water. They’re also known to be more aggressive in their approach.
Sadly, the species has been categorised as vulnerable in the ICUN list. In fact, they’re legally protected and are classified as a national treasure in Japan.?
Their life’s at risk due to industrial pollution, habitat destruction and even overfishing that doesn’t leave fishes for them to eat, causing them to move elsewhere and start again.?
Looking at the bird in action below: