Golden Eagle and Griffon Vulture photography

Golden Eagle and Griffon Vulture photography: 48 hours intimate with Nature

7,30 a.m. A group of 50+ Griffon Vultures started landing about 30 m in front of me. One by one the big birds overtook the field. Noisy flapping and flashing of wings felt like being really close to them. They were really close. Once the Griffons settled down two other birds landed on a lovely dead tree. Golden Eagles! The Lords of the Sky. With their powerful talons and bill they have no equal predator in the sky. Both the Griffons and the Eagles were looking at the bait but no one wanted to start eating before making sure everything was alright. It took some 10 min to the first Griffon to start approach the bait with a few metres. One of the Golden Eagles saw that and didn’t like it. It took off from the branch and with its full power attacked the Griffon. This was enough to convince all the other more than 50 vultures to wait until the Eagle finish with its breakfast. The other Eagle was still on the tree watching its back. This is what wildlife photography is about. It was real.

his was the start of the second day from my 48 hours stay in a hide in the Eastern Rhodope moutains. I entered on Sunday evening and came out on Tuesday evening. It was definitely worth it. On the first day the main birds that came over to the bait was one Golden Eagle and one Eurasian Sparrowhawk. Both of came landed two times. On the second day was the main performance of Griffon Vultures, Red Foxes, Golden Eagles, Ravens and Hooded Crows. Not to mention the Black Redstarts and Wood Larks that were around all the time.

Once I woke up on the first day, two foxes were around the bait. It was still dark and the light wasn’t adequate for a decent shot. Rain was drizzling and clouds had overtaken the sky which made the scene even more dramatic. The day was fairly quiet but the first stay of the Golden Eagle for one hour and then its return an hour later made the day. The second day was really dynamic. I had no time to eat but didn’t really needed to. The Griffons were around for the whole day presenting superb opportunities for photos. The Foxes and hooded Crows were giving additional flavour of the dynamics and rules in Nature. Often they were tempted to get some food but either or Griffons or Eagles were around so it wasn’t easy.

Patience pays off. That’s what most people say. Please note that all images are copyrighted.

Here is a gallery of a few Golden Eagle images:

 

Here are a few images of Griffon Vultures. Please note that some scenes are not recommended to people with weak hearts.