It's a Bird! It's a Plane! It IS the Eagle!

Today we were busy! Very busy in fact! Michael was on top of the house applying metal flashing around some places where that pesky squirrel gnawed numerous holes! He had decided that instead of just patching said holes, he would patch them with something that was unchewable! Mark was out back putting siding on the shed that he is building. He is using sheets of plywood as the siding and I was painting each before he hung it. I had decided to paint each sheet of plywood before it was hung so it would be easier for me to reach. I had gotten the idea from my sweet mother-in-law years ago. Before she passed away, she had told me the story about how she and my father-in-law worked together to build their house. He would apply a siding board and she would immediately paint it. I just sort of took her idea in reverse! I painted before Mark applied the plywood!

While I was painting, Michael called down from the rooftop that an eagle was overhead. Hmmm..was this another false alarm? Was that Turkey Vulture back confusing us? I pondered whether or not to stop painting long enough to investigate. Needing a break (and a drink of water!), I grabbed the camera and headed to the front yard. Sure enough, I could see a dark figure of a bird flying through the treetops. This did fly like the eagle! Still not totally convinced, I eased my way over between the Little Bayou House and my brother's place. Sure enough, I saw the bird swoop low into his yard. It was the Bald Eagle! I was excited! I have been hoping that this pair would nest somewhere near the Bayou! Perhaps this was the intent of the birds! I saw my two brothers sitting on the porch and made my way to them. The eagle was the topic of our conversation of course! From his porch, I was able to take several nice pictures. Then the other eagle appeared! Two! The pair stayed in his yard for quite some time. One in clear view of my camera..the other well-hidden in the top of a pine tree. My brother, Jimmy, was kind enough to let me stay on his porch to take several more pictures even though he had to leave.

No matter how many times I see the Bald Eagles, I never fail to be enthralled. They are such majestic birds! A little known fact...in this case, "bald" does not mean hairless! The word also means "marked with white"! Hence, the Bald Eagle is named because of the white feathers of its head and neck! (Just thought I would throw that in there for whatever it is worth!) My hopes of a nesting pair on the Bayou just might become a reality! With all the "progress" humans are making around here, this might be just about the only secluded place left for the Bald Eagles to nest in peace. The Bay offers plenty of fish and the surrounding areas teem with small wildlife making dinner an easy task for this bird of prey. Plus, since there are a number of ospreys around, a meal can always be stolen! The eagle is not above taking advantage of the ospreys' expert fishing abilities!

After finally capturing my eagle's image, I went back to work. By the time I picked up my paint brush again, Mark had almost finished putting on half of the siding. I apologized profusely for abandoning him with the work and offered the story of the eagle as my reason. He smiled and nodded. Bless his heart! He knows that I am a sucker for the wildlife here on the Bayou!