A bald eagle chases a goose at Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge on Jan. 2, 2022 (John Svendsen/Special to Salem Reporter)
A small, slightly injured Dusky Canada Goose recently learned a lesson in second chances and two larcenous eagles were re-acquainted with the old saying “a bird in the hand is worth two in the bush.”
Salem wildlife photographer John Svendsen photographed a remarkable series of photos of the goose’s seeming fatal encounter with an eagle at Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge on Sunday, Jan. 2.
The goose was walking across the frozen surface of a small pond along Coville Road, a popular spot for bird watchers, when a bald eagle attacked from the air. The goose was unable to get any traction on the slick surface and was unable to dive beneath the ice or leap into flight to avoid the hungry raptor.
The small goose’s attempts to avoid the attack only seemed to avoid the inevitable, even after the goose was able to briefly leap into the air before the eagle closed its talons around the hapless water fowl.
With dinner seemingly firm in his grip, the eagle flew to a small island in the pond with prey in hand. Suddenly, two other eagles appeared, determined to steal their afternoon meal and a three way fight for control of the goose erupted.
While the three eagles battled for control of the goose, the goose slipped away and disappeared into brush nearby, leaving the three predators completely empty-handed.
A bald eagle captures a goose at Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge on Jan. 2, 2022 (John Svendsen/Special to Salem Reporter)
An eagle captures a goose at Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge on Jan. 2, 2022 (John Svendsen/Special to Salem Reporter)
An eagle captures a goose at Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge on Jan. 2, 2022 (John Svendsen/Special to Salem Reporter)
An eagle captures a goose at Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge on Jan. 2, 2022 (John Svendsen/Special to Salem Reporter)
An eagle captures a goose at Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge on Jan. 2, 2022 (John Svendsen/Special to Salem Reporter)
Eagles fight over a goose at Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge on Jan. 2, 2022 (John Svendsen/Special to Salem Reporter)
Eagles fight at Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge on Jan. 2, 2022 (John Svendsen/Special to Salem Reporter)
Eagles fight at Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge on Jan. 2, 2022 (John Svendsen/Special to Salem Reporter)
Eagles soar in the air above Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge on Jan. 3, 2022 (John Svendsen/Special to Salem Reporter)
Eagles soar in the air above Baskett Slough National Wildlife Refuge on Jan. 3, 2022 (John Svendsen/Special to Salem Reporter)
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Photographer Ron Cooper and his wife Penny moved to Salem in 1969 to take a job as photographer at the Oregon Statesman (later the Statesman Journal). Their three children, Monica, Kimberly, and Christopher, attended and graduated from Salem public schools. Cooper retired from the Statesman Journal in 2001 but, has continued his passion for photography in many ways, including as a photographer for the Salem Reporter.
