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Bald Eagle kills Cat
Topic Started: Apr 24 2013, 12:07 PM (7,743 Views)
Black Ice
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Drom King
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Thursday, July 02, 2009 By LORI STABILE lstabile@repub.com

BELCHERTOWN - Ellen M. Majka was inside her home on Prescott Hill when she saw a bald eagle swoop down into her neighbor's yard.

It was the first time she saw a bald eagle in the neighborhood.

But even more surprising was what she saw in its talons when it flew back up - a black cat.

"I've never seen anything like that in my life. I was shocked. I said, 'Oh my God,'" Majka said.

The incident happened early, just after 6 am. on June 23.

According to eagle experts, a bald eagle capturing a cat is not impossible, but highly unusual.

"I believe it is within the realm of possibility and has been documented elsewhere. Bald eagles are capable of taking domestic cats," William J. Davis, district manager for Worcester County for the state Division of Fisheries and Wildlife, said Wednesday.

While the main diet of bald eagles is fish, Davis said they are opportunistic and will eat squirrels, turtles, even Canada geese. They are also known to feast on animal carcasses, including deer.

Interestingly, when eaglets were brought to the Quabbin Reservoir in the 1980s from Nova Scotia, wildlife biologists there believed that the adult bald eagles were preying on feral and barn cats that lived near a lake, Davis said.

Ralph E. Taylor, district manager for the Connecticut Valley wildlife district for the state agency, agreed that a bald eagle taking a cat would be unusual
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It seems cats hold grudges :D
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Edited by Black Ice, Apr 24 2013, 12:24 PM.
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Vivec
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Interesting, normally I only imagine Golden Eagles be as ballsy (or stupid) to full on attack a cat like that.
Was the cat already eaten though? It's missing most of its upper body.
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k9boy
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Its probably a roadkill, the eagle is just scavenging.
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Vivec
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Doesn't seem like it though, the article states that the Eagle had entered the yard and swooped up with the cat.
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Full Throttle
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An eagle taking a cat? Seems totally believable to me, though the cat in that photo looks more like a car has gone over it than an eagle.
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221Extra
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Scythian
Apr 27 2013, 05:16 AM
Doesn't seem like it though, the article states that the Eagle had entered the yard and swooped up with the cat.
The picture and the story aren't related; here's the entire article:
Quote:
 
By LORI STABILE
lstabile@repub.com

BELCHERTOWN - Ellen M. Majka was inside her home on Prescott Hill when she saw a bald eagle swoop down into her neighbor's yard.

It was the first time she saw a bald eagle in the neighborhood. But even more surprising was what she saw in its talons when it flew back up - a black cat.

"I've never seen anything like that in my life. I was shocked. I said, 'Oh my God,'" Majka said.
The incident happened early, just after 6 a.m., on June 23. According to eagle experts, a bald eagle capturing a cat is not impossible, but highly unusual.

"I believe it is within the realm of possibility and has been documented elsewhere. Bald eagles are capable of taking domestic cats," William J. Davis, district manager for Worcester County for the state Division of Fisheries and Wildlife, said Wednesday.

While the main diet of bald eagles is fish, Davis said they are opportunistic and will eat squirrels, turtles, even Canada geese. They are also known to feast on animal carcasses, including deer.

Interestingly, when eaglets were brought to the Quabbin Reservoir in the 1980s from Nova Scotia, wildlife biologists there believed that the adult bald eagles were preying on feral and barn cats that lived near a lake, Davis said.

Ralph E. Taylor, district manager for the Connecticut Valley wildlife district for the state agency, agreed that a bald eagle taking a cat would be unusual.

Taylor and Davis have been involved in eagle banding and have observed many nests. There are eight bald eagle pairs successfully breeding at the Quabbin Reservoir now. They say they've never found evidence of cat collars or bones in the nests.

"We see natural foods in there, not pets," Taylor said.

Taylor said the average cat would likely put up a fight, and a bald eagle is more apt to pick an easier prey target. In fact, their weight is about the same. A female bald eagle can weigh up to 14 pounds.

"I'm skeptical, but I can't say it didn't happen," Taylor said.

A healthy cat would fight to escape an eagle's grasp, he said. That's why he's skeptical of the report.

But "a very young cat, very emaciated cat or a dead cat" could be a possibility
, Taylor said. He said a red-tailed hawk or great horned owl also could take a cat, but would likely consume one on the ground.

Where he does find cat collars is in coyote dens. Coyotes and fishers prey on cats, Taylor said.

Majka said she alerted her neighbors to keep their animals inside. Majka has a Pekinese dog, which is smaller than most cats. She estimated she lives about four miles from the Quabbin.

"Usually we need to worry about coyotes, not about big birds ... We've all been watching our animals," Majka said.

Majka said she doesn't know the owners of the house where she saw the eagle and never broached the subject with them. She doesn't know if the cat taken was their pet or one of the neighborhood strays.


http://www.masslive.com/news/index.ssf/2009/07/bald_eagle_scoops_up_black_cat.html


I do agree with k9boy that the cat in that unrelated photo was likely roadkill.
Edited by 221Extra, Apr 27 2013, 05:35 AM.
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Black Ice
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I swear to god I didn't know the photo wasn't related. I got them both from the same page of the same site. Ill post the link.
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Vivec
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Thanks then, thought the picture was related to the incident.
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Full Throttle
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An eagle killing a cat I can totally believe, here is a martial eagle that killed a serval.

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JaM
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Clearly an eagle can kill a cat. However, it's much harder for an eagle to fly off with a full grown cat. There was actually a study of eagles carry capacity, and they have their limits. I don't remember how much, but they could carry much less than their own weight. Unless you count "hopping a few metres" as flying off with a prey.

About the picture - it looks like a roadkill cat, maybe even not a whole cat. The fact that the eagle flies very low would suggest that it had just taken the cat from the road. It may just carry the cat away from the road a bit, the picture doesn't indicate that it could fly off with a full grown cat. Maybe it can, but it would be near the limit for the eagle.
Edited by JaM, Apr 27 2013, 06:14 AM.
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Black Ice
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This was the link I posted
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/2288615/posts
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FelinePowah
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Full Throttle
Apr 27 2013, 05:52 AM
An eagle killing a cat I can totally believe, here is a martial eagle that killed a serval.

That's a very young serval, I very much doubt it would attempt an adult.
/
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Vivyx
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Apr 27 2013, 05:52 AM
An eagle killing a cat I can totally believe, here is a martial eagle that killed a serval.

Kitten.
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kuri
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i wonder why this thread is worth to be read.
Only a kitten? We learned in this forum, that an eagle is able to kill a wolf or maybe a leopard.
/sarcasm off
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