A wildlife photographer has shared a series of incredible pictures of the interaction he captured between a peregrine falcon and a bald eagle on his trip to a Maryland dam.
North Carolina-based Maynard K Knapp and his wife, Alison, were at Conowingo Dam—which is famous for eagles fishing in the river just below the dam—on the Susquehanna River for their first visit when they noticed something.
A peregrine falcon was chasing a hawk away from its territory. Maynard was then on the lookout to see what it was going to chase next.
“[W]hile I was photographing a nice, juvenile bald eagle, Alison saw the peregrine starting to chase a bald eagle,” Maynard said. “It was in the same general direction that I was looking, so I found it right away, but they immediately flew behind some trees on the edge of the river.”
Knowing it would be an interesting shot to capture, Maynard kept his camera ready. He said that he was hoping they would be able to get away from the trees and fly above the parking lot.
Luckily for the photographer, not only did the birds move away from the trees, but they also changed their direction and headed toward them.
The series of pictures that followed showed the peregrine falcon bullying the bald eagle. The peregrine falcon swooped at the bird of prey before grabbing talons full of feathers.
“You can see from the photos that the falcon was determined to keep that eagle away from its nest forever,” Maynard said. “I think part of my luck in getting the photos is that I do not use a tripod, even when I use my largest lens, so I am always ready to get the shot.”
