Wildlife tour leader captures the moment sea eagle grabs a goose
A WILDLIFE enthusiast captured the moment a white-tailed sea eagle was seen flying off with a goose clutched in its talons.
The giant bird of prey was photographed by Stephen Duffield, 50, on North Uist, Outer Hebrides, as it hunted a flock of barnacle geese.
Mr Duffield was trying to read the identification rings on the legs of the geese, which were feeding on the machair at Knockitorran, when he spotted the eagle flying low to the ground.
The wildlife tour leader said he felt lucky to witness the “stunning” experience.
The white-tailed eagle is the largest bird of prey in the UK, with a wingspan of 8ft, and the fourth-largest eagle in the world.
Mr Duffield said: “The eagle was chasing the goose very low, around 6ft above the ground, towards the coast and made three or four attempts to grab the goose.
“It rose high in the air and then dived on the bird once again, this time it caught the goose in mid-air.
“My camera was in my rucksack when I first saw the hunt, but I quickly pulled it out and managed to grab a series of shots as the eagle pursued the goose.
“I’ve never seen whitetailed eagle hunting barnacle geese before but did see one kill a greylag goose last September whilst leading a group trip.
“It was stunning to witness the whole thing although I did feel a bit sorry for the goose, which the eagle carried across the machair before landing over a hillock, so only the top half of the eagle was visible.
“I didn’t want to disturb the eagle off its hard-earned kill so didn’t go any closer.
“I’ve photographed white-tailed eagles plenty of times as they are becoming more common in the islands but I was very lucky to be in the right place to catch one hunting.”