Alaska eagle survives plunge after mating dance

[NewMexiKen]

From The Courier.com:



This Sunday, April 4, 2010 picture provided by Bob Benda, a bird rescuer and biology professor at Prince William Sound Community College, shows a female eagle who fell into the snow in Valdez, Alaska. An acrobatic display of passion proved too much for a pair of eagles engaged in a mating dance in Alaska's Prince William Sound. The surviving female bird is recovering from injuries sustained when the winged couple slammed beak first into a hard snowbank in what her rescuers believe was an aerial courting ritual gone awry. The male died in the impact. (AP Photo/Bob Benda)


Alaska eagle survives plunge after mating dance

By RACHEL D'ORO
Associated Press Writer
AP Photo
AP Photo/Bob Benda
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ANCHORAGE, Alaska (AP) -- An acrobatic display of passion proved too much for a pair of eagles engaged in a mating dance over Alaska's Prince William Sound.

The female bird is recovering from an injured wing and other injuries sustained when the couple slammed beak-first into a hard snowbank in what her rescuers believe was an aerial courting ritual gone awry. The male eagle died in the impact, which left the birds buried upside down at least two feet in the snow in the town of Valdez.

It's mating season for eagles, who perform an elaborate ritual where they clasp talons and spiral toward the ground. This pair probably got caught up in the throes of the moment, said Bob Benda, a bird rescuer and biology professor at Prince William Sound Community College who was among those responding to the Easter Sunday crash.

"They just lose track of what they're doing and don't know how close they are to the ground," he said. "It's raging hormones or something."

But most eagles fling themselves back to reality instead of diving through a crunchy layer of snow. In this case, the male landed next to the female. If the talons had been locked, they were now separated, possibly thrust apart by the velocity of the landing.

Benda said he thought both eagles had died but then noticed the female was breathing. He helped arrange the eagle's transfer to the Anchorage-based Bird Treatment and Learning Center, where she is slowly emerging from shock...

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[NewMexiKen]

This Sunday, April 4, 2010 picture provided by Bob Benda, a bird rescuer and biology professor at Prince William Sound Community College, shows a pair of eagles who fell into the snow in Valdez, Alaska. An acrobatic display of passion proved too much for the pair engaged in a mating dance in Alaska's Prince William Sound. The surviving female bird is recovering from injuries sustained when the winged couple slammed beak first into a hard snowbank in what her rescuers believe was an aerial courting ritual gone awry. The male died in the impact. (AP Photo/Bob Benda)





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