Wedge-Tailed Eagle: Aquila audax; wing span approaching ten feet/ 2.9 meters; female larger than male; nest is a huge pile of sticks lined with fresh eucalypt leaves, often high.
Forest Raven: Corvus Tasmanicus; wing span approaching three feet/ .9 meters; large stick nest lined with bark, wool, 10m or higher in fork in forest tree.
These two wonderful birds are always hanging around Windgrove; the eagle majestic in flight, the raven cocky and cheeky.
But why can’t they get along? Singly or in groups of up to five, the much tinier raven will harass and dive bomb the eagle until the eagle drifts off slowly. I’ve watched ravens pump their wings furiously for long lengths of time to keep up with an eagle only to have the eagle soar off easily without the pesky raven bothering it. Minutes later the eagle returns and the chase is on again. How much energy is expended in an attempt to protect territory; territory that in the end is not protected. You see, the raven never wins. Somehow, though, it must gain some satisfaction (or entertainment value) from the harassment.
Some days I feel like the eagle, other days the raven.
Recently, I put the large Gunn’s sign back out on the main road as my way of being the raven. The logging can’t legally be stopped, but I sure love harassing the bastards.
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