Have you seen a Bald Eagle?

Bald Eagle
A shot from the hip by being in the right spot.
The day was a dip on a Harlequin Duck chase.

It happens during the winter months almost anytime I stop near a body of water to look at birds. A stranger will stop to see that I am alright, what I am doing, or ask "Have you seen a Bald Eagle?". 

I tend to be looking for anything other than Bald Eagles and prefer to focus on waterfowl or gulls. Sometimes I even fail to notice the eagles or at least struggle to accurately count the number of Bald Eagles. Almost always I or one of the group I am with (often the kindest and most patient) walks over and describes what we are doing when the stranger expresses interest in our activities or in birds. Often the group of birders discuss more colourful responses to the question "Have you seen a Bald Eagle" but rarely have I heard it given in person. In rare instances, the stranger engages in the dialogue and wants to look through the scope, look at a field guide, or wants to look through a non-plastic non-collapsable pair of binoculars. Also on rare occasions do we engage about their passion and desire to see or photograph a Bald Eagle.

I perceive a radical change in my breadth of knowledge and time-usage as it pertains to nature and birding. To a smaller extent my goals, focus, and passion have also changed. Peculiarly I thoroughly enjoy listening to stories regarding how others have changed their habits and passions as well. It is easy for myself to focus on the recent past. I enjoy listening to others as they tell of their spark bird, share/brag of successes, and share/laugh off their misses and dipped chases. Somehow I have unconsciously omitted stories of pure joy and overwhelming awe of nature, yet those stories are the ones that I recall the best. My memories are full of these stories but almost none of them include a rare bird or chase.

By now some of you have correctly deduced the two paragraph themes are related. Others who managed to read the disjointed and seemingly unrelated paragraphs are asking what the heck is Malcolm thinking about now. Micky and I volunteered both days at the 2017 Wyandotte County Lake Eagles Days at Mr & Mrs F. L. Schlagle Library and helped participants view Bald Eagles. I was shocked at the number of individuals who felt overwhelmed by the joy of watching or seeing a Bald Eagle. Micky had expressed a similar reaction when she volunteered last year. Micky "had a memorable experience at Eagle Days at Wyandotte County Lake. [She] was helping people look through the scopes to see eagles and other birds. A man and his visually impaired wife came in and [she] had 2 adult Eagles sharply contrasted on some dark ice. He wasn't sure she could see them but she stepped up to try. The look of wonder on her face when she could make out the white-heads on the dark ice brought shivers up my spine. She couldn't see their bodies but she was so joyful for what she could see. That was my best moment all day."

   

(L) Micky followed John Bollin's lead and brought step-stool the second day! (R) I help kids look through the scope.
Photos courtesy Micky Louis.

Three adults Bald Eagles and left-over Snow Goose.
Photo courtesy Micky Louis.

I suspect that all of us that volunteered (there were five of us in total that helped for an hour or more across the two days) likely had a similar experience in helping others see the Bald Eagles. The simple amazement of watching a Bald Eagle soaring, perched, or eating was exhilarating for many of the participants. I spent much of the time crouched low to the ground helping kids look through the scope. One young boy looked through the scope at the perched eagles eating on the ice. They were distant enough that it was possible to miss them without the use of optics. His face revealed the shock that many other kids had but his actions were the most surprising. He quickly ran to the objective end and looked back through the scope asking "Where is the Eagle?" Without seeing it on the other side of the scope he returned to the eyepiece and once again asked his dad, "Where is the Eagle? I see it here [looking through the eyepiece], but where is it?" The simple joy of nature was quite apparent from the kids. That young boy returned three times throughout the day to look again.

So you might wonder, where does that leave me? My simple take away is that I hope to engage strangers better to understand their moments of wonder. I simply want to share the joys of nature with others better. This might include irrelevant stories of their common yard birds but I suspect it will also include me asking "Have you seen a Bald Eagle?"