Friday was a bonanza for observing mating rituals--spring is stirring and I was in prime raptor habitat: the Cle Elum to Thorp area, where coniferous mountains give way to rolling shrub-steppe and flat agricultural land.
I arrived at the Cle Elum River around 7:30. Within minutes, raptor-ish squawking was overhead: a mature eagle (meaning it sported a fully white head and tail) heading toward the river. Then another.
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| Female on right; females are typically larger than males. |
They were flying very close together--a mated pair. After zooming over the water, one landed atop a snag and the other soon made purchase on her back. For bird sex, it was long-playing—29 seconds, according to my camera's metadata. Like males of many species, among them homo sapiens, he threw back his head, proclaiming pleasure and conquest, both during and after copulation.
From a distance, their bodies merged, becoming a beast with two backs--plus four wings. Below is the sequence:
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| The male is now on the right. |
Your first paragraph made me laugh out loud!
ReplyDeleteThanks the gods for birds.
Great sequence of photos--but as far as your first paragraph goes, I say this state of affairs reflects very badly on humans who have the Y chromosome.
ReplyDeleteThank you, both of you, for your implicit sympathies regarding the first paragraph! Yes, it is that bad here in Seattle.
ReplyDeleteIn all honesty, it seems a mystery to me as to how you could be in this position, but I feel sure that you'll find someone great!
ReplyDelete