Cliff, I have not spent nearly as much time as you there but the only Goldens I saw there were a couple up on the top near where the access road starts down to the TNC camp at least where it used to be. I have not been back there for about 7 years and the 2 TNC empoloyees that I traveled with and set my schedule are no longer with TNC one retired and the other moved to Figi … so I have not kept up on the status of the old TNC camp in the Canyon.
On Aug 24, 2026, at 9:32 AM, Cliff Weisse via groups.io <cliffandlisa@…> wrote:
FWIW, I’ve been guiding on the South Fork of the Snake since 1989
and I’ve never seen a Golden Eagle down low along the river. There
are indeed Goldens nesting in the canyon section and when I see
them they’re invariably soaring way up high. My money is on
juvenile Bald Eagle.
Cliff
On 8/24/26 09:21AM, Ken Miracle via
groups.io wrote:
What a cool encounter no matter which Eagle it was. A Golden Eagle
there would be less likely than a Juvenile or Immature Bald Eagle.
Also Bald Eagles are much more likely to be harassing Great Blue
Herons and Ospreys. Could you see a golden nape on the eagle? Or
was it close enough with legs extended to see if it had feathers
all the way down the legs to the feet a Golden has that but not a
Bald. If there was any white on the undersides of the bird where
was it. An immature Golden will have white patches at the base of
the primaries in the wings and at the base of the tail an Adult
Golden will not have any white. The beak on a Golden is also
shorter/smaller than the more elongated beak of a Bald Eagle. A
Juvenile, hatch year, Bald Eagle will have a very dark head and
body with varying degrees of white in the underside of the wings
and tail but the white will not be in the same places as an
immature Golden.
I spent quite a bit of time over there volunteering with The
Nature Conservancy in my first 10 years of retirement. Most of
the time out of their camp in the canyon stretch. Yes I did get
a chance to fish once in a while.
For reference here some photos I have taken of Bald Eagles at
the age when they are most often mistaken for Golden Eagles.
<_KMM3192.jpeg><Z91_0880.jpeg><Z91_0883.jpeg><Z91_1879.jpeg><Z91_8787.jpeg><Z91_9176.jpeg><Z91_9183.jpeg><Z91_9186.jpeg>
On Aug 24, 2026, at 7:51 AM, John Schmidt via groups.io
<jsecho03@…> wrote:
Saw a pretty incredible, dramatic episode while
floating the South Fork of the Snake River the other
day. That river is loaded with Bald Eagles, Osprey and
other large birds. So seeing two large birds flying
towards us wasn’t out of the ordinary… until they were
almost upon us and we saw, what I’m pretty sure was a
Golden Eagle attacking, at high speed, a Great Blue
Heron. At the last second, maybe 40′ above our raft, the
eagle broke off the chase and the heron flew safely
away. One of those “did we really just see that?”
moments.
Ken
Miracle
chukar28@…
208-570-2780
“Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything
as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God” 2COR 3:5
--
Cliff and Lisa Weisse
Island Park, Idaho
cliffandlisa@...
Ken Miracle
chukar28@…
208-570-2780
“Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God” 2COR 3:5
Thanks for the pics Ken. It happened so fast and was over in a flash, but upon further review it most likely was an immature bald eagle. I was watching the heron escape so I didn’t get as long a look at the eagle. We saw quite a few immature balds but none had a golden hue. Your pics certainly help!
FWIW, I’ve been guiding on the South Fork of the Snake since 1989
and I’ve never seen a Golden Eagle down low along the river. There
are indeed Goldens nesting in the canyon section and when I see
them they’re invariably soaring way up high. My money is on
juvenile Bald Eagle.
Cliff
On 8/24/26 09:21AM, Ken Miracle via
groups.io wrote:
What a cool encounter no matter which Eagle it was. A Golden Eagle
there would be less likely than a Juvenile or Immature Bald Eagle.
Also Bald Eagles are much more likely to be harassing Great Blue
Herons and Ospreys. Could you see a golden nape on the eagle? Or
was it close enough with legs extended to see if it had feathers
all the way down the legs to the feet a Golden has that but not a
Bald. If there was any white on the undersides of the bird where
was it. An immature Golden will have white patches at the base of
the primaries in the wings and at the base of the tail an Adult
Golden will not have any white. The beak on a Golden is also
shorter/smaller than the more elongated beak of a Bald Eagle. A
Juvenile, hatch year, Bald Eagle will have a very dark head and
body with varying degrees of white in the underside of the wings
and tail but the white will not be in the same places as an
immature Golden.
I spent quite a bit of time over there volunteering with The
Nature Conservancy in my first 10 years of retirement. Most of
the time out of their camp in the canyon stretch. Yes I did get
a chance to fish once in a while.
For reference here some photos I have taken of Bald Eagles at
the age when they are most often mistaken for Golden Eagles.
On Aug 24, 2026, at 7:51 AM, John Schmidt via groups.io
<jsecho03@…> wrote:
Saw a pretty incredible, dramatic episode while
floating the South Fork of the Snake River the other
day. That river is loaded with Bald Eagles, Osprey and
other large birds. So seeing two large birds flying
towards us wasn’t out of the ordinary… until they were
almost upon us and we saw, what I’m pretty sure was a
Golden Eagle attacking, at high speed, a Great Blue
Heron. At the last second, maybe 40′ above our raft, the
eagle broke off the chase and the heron flew safely
away. One of those “did we really just see that?”
moments.
Ken
Miracle
chukar28@…
208-570-2780
“Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything
as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God” 2COR 3:5
--
Cliff and Lisa Weisse
Island Park, Idaho
cliffandlisa@...
What a cool encounter no matter which Eagle it was. A Golden Eagle there would be less likely than a Juvenile or Immature Bald Eagle. Also Bald Eagles are much more likely to be harassing Great Blue Herons and Ospreys. Could you see a golden nape on the eagle? Or was it close enough with legs extended to see if it had feathers all the way down the legs to the feet a Golden has that but not a Bald. If there was any white on the undersides of the bird where was it. An immature Golden will have white patches at the base of the primaries in the wings and at the base of the tail an Adult Golden will not have any white. The beak on a Golden is also shorter/smaller than the more elongated beak of a Bald Eagle. A Juvenile, hatch year, Bald Eagle will have a very dark head and body with varying degrees of white in the underside of the wings and tail but the white will not be in the same places as an immature Golden.
I spent quite a bit of time over there volunteering with The Nature Conservancy in my first 10 years of retirement. Most of the time out of their camp in the canyon stretch. Yes I did get a chance to fish once in a while.
For reference here some photos I have taken of Bald Eagles at the age when they are most often mistaken for Golden Eagles.
On Aug 24, 2026, at 7:51 AM, John Schmidt via groups.io <jsecho03@…> wrote:
Saw a pretty incredible, dramatic episode while floating the South Fork of the Snake River the other day. That river is loaded with Bald Eagles, Osprey and other large birds. So seeing two large birds flying towards us wasn’t out of the ordinary… until they were almost upon us and we saw, what I’m pretty sure was a Golden Eagle attacking, at high speed, a Great Blue Heron. At the last second, maybe 40′ above our raft, the eagle broke off the chase and the heron flew safely away. One of those “did we really just see that?” moments.
Ken Miracle
chukar28@…
208-570-2780
“Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God” 2COR 3:5
Here in Ammon, the numbers of hummingbirds have been consistent and perhaps a little higher than usual. The Rufous Hummingbird number have been particularly high this year. Over the past seven days, we will observe 6-10 individuals at the same time in the evenings, which is not common for us. The Black Chinned Hummingbirds have been consistent with past years. Those are the two species we observe with regularity.
Micah Austin
Ammon, ID
On Monday, August 24, 2026 at 08:06:13 AM MDT, Richard and Ann Rusnak via groups.io <rarusnak62@…> wrote:
All, Hummer numbers at our SW Boise place are holding consistent with previous years. Which is to say, only 2-4 all season, and only BCHU’s. Currently the 3 juvenile BC’s continue to hang around, possibly influenced by a plethora of dense flowers, which they feed on regularly. Last year the BC’s stayed later than any of my 5 seasons at this location, last sighting about 9/12.
At our Valley Co place near Cascade, last week we still had 5 BCHU’s, only one appeared to be an adult, at our feeders, with no sightings there of Calliope or Rufous in many weeks.
Happy Birding All, Rich
All, Hummer numbers at our SW Boise place are holding consistent with previous years. Which is to say, only 2-4 all season, and only BCHU’s. Currently the 3 juvenile BC’s continue to hang around, possibly influenced by a plethora of dense flowers, which they feed on regularly. Last year the BC’s stayed later than any of my 5 seasons at this location, last sighting about 9/12.
At our Valley Co place near Cascade, last week we still had 5 BCHU’s, only one appeared to be an adult, at our feeders, with no sightings there of Calliope or Rufous in many weeks.
Happy Birding All, Rich
Thanks for sharing the incredible and dramatic interaction between the two birds. That would capture my attention, for sure.
Diann Stone
Boise Depot Bench
Saw a pretty incredible, dramatic episode while floating the South Fork of the Snake River the other day. That river is loaded with Bald Eagles, Osprey and other large birds. So seeing two large birds flying towards us wasn’t out of the ordinary… until they were almost upon us and we saw, what I’m pretty sure was a Golden Eagle attacking, at high speed, a Great Blue Heron. At the last second, maybe 40′ above our raft, the eagle broke off the chase and the heron flew safely away. One of those “did we really just see that?” moments.
Here in the hills east of Pocatello, Moonlight Mine area, the hummingbird numbers are noticeably decreased, but those that are here are quite active! One thing we’ve noticed this year is a lack of Rufous. We had an early (July 4) female and male arrival but they only stayed a day or two. Since then, just an occasional female.
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