Bald Eagles don’t just try to intimidate Great Blue Heron; they spend almost as much time trying to intimidate each other. Sometimes it seems deadly serious, like when these two juveniles tried to eat some of the fish the adult was eating, perhaps thinking the adult would be intimidated by two youngsters.
The adult was having none of it, and though I don’t think he did any real damage he drove off the juvenile eagles.
It’s impossible to tell an Eagle’s intent until after the event has unfolded, but quite often an adult that seems to be trying to intimidate another adult
will settle in next to them, and they will be perfectly content to look back and forth at each other for the next ten or fifteen minutes.
Many times, though, a particular piece of real estate seems especially desirable and several eagles will jostle each other until some decide to leave.
Of course, sometimes a Bald Eagle just wants someone else’s fish, whether it be Great Blue Heron’s or a fellow Bald Eagle’s.
