We have an active Bald Eagle nest on one corner of our property. Usually the nesting eagles warn off any other eagles that get too close. This spring though we've seen very different behavior - both here and in a local park. We've had convocations of up to seven eagles roosting on the property or flying overhead together.
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Here is a story by Mr. Watt aka grnchile of an encounter that happened on April 1st.
I went out on an early evening hike, returning at around 6 PM. I stopped briefly under a large fir next to the house. As I was standing there I heard a loud noise overhead. I looked up to see bark raining down (it would have been a lot worse with gulls) and two Bald Eagles flying off. From the calls as they left I could tell that were at least a couple of other eagles in nearby trees.
An hour and a half later we were treated to a colorful sunset with the silhouettes of multiple eagles circling lazily over the house and the bluff above the beach. Just after sunset we heard some unusual cries from the woods. The dog started barking and wanting to go outside. He's just a few days out from major surgery so that was particularly weird behavior. When I took him out a bit later eagles flew from both that same fir and from a tree on the other side of the house. That's not what had him worked up though. Once we got around to the water side of the house he oriented on the source of the new sound. It was coming from a stand of undergrowth in the wetland below the house. I saw flashes of white on the ground there in my flashlight beam and so my first thought was "injured eagle." We've seen them chase each other at high speed through the trees (how can a bird so large do that?) and it seemed like that was going to happen some day.
There's a local wild bird rescue that can handle eagles but our previous experience with wildlife rescues is that they like to have an idea of what they are going to be facing before coming out. I couldn't get a clear view from the deck but it looked like what I'd glimpsed wasn't too far from one of our trails. I went down to see if I could get a better idea of what was wrong.
When I finally got a view from the trail I saw that it was two mature Bald Eagles, not just one. They were both lying on their sides with at least one set of talons locked together. It got quiet when they saw me and, after a brief struggle, they disengaged, stood up, and backed away from each other and from me. I was clearly too close (they were only a couple of dozen feet from spot where I first saw them) so I started backing away as well. One eagle turned and launched itself down the trail away from me and back towards the water. There was another crash which I hoped was it landing somewhere safe.
When I turned the light to see if that eagle was still visible the other one started to move. It hopped out from under the bushes and headed in my direction, raising its wings in what felt like a "look how big I am" pose. I continued backing away. After a few seconds of this that eagle took off down the trail directly towards me. Maybe the trail was a clear place to take off? Maybe it was a threat? Maybe it was just flying away from the other one? I got down. It flew over and then turned down another trail towards the water. That too was followed by the faint crash of what I hoped was an eagle landing in a suitable location.
At that point we had two eagles both capable of flight and with no injuries that I was able to see with a flashlight. I wasn't really sure what I had interrupted but it was clearly time to leave and write it up for a future bucket.