Someone took a video of that famous wedgetail eagle (they call him "Jack the Ripper") ploughing talons-first into the top surface of an ultralight wing - and bouncing off, as his talons couldn't grab anything, due to the smooth surface! Can't find that video now.
Have you seen the videos of the eagle swooping down from the mountains and grabbing a goat or sheep? The goat or sheep then falls off the ledge with the eagle hanging on for grim death! - rolling over and over and over, until they hit more level ground, and the rolling stops!
The eagle then flaps his wings to drag himself upright, and he's still got hold of the goat or sheep! He finally makes off with it, once it stops struggling!
We brought up a wedgetail eagle from a chick once. We were clearing (chaining) reasonably heavy timber and one of the big trees had an eagles nest in it, unbeknown to us. If we'd known it was there, we could've left that individual tree.
However, the tree came down and on the next round of the block, we spotted this eagle chick. He was about the size of a full-grown chicken, but only had a few feathers, so he couldn't fly.
Didn't have any trouble picking him up (we were looking out for Momma and Pop eagle! LOL), popped him into a sack and took him home.
You couldn't do this today because they're a protected species - but back in the early 1970's, they were declared vermin because farmers believed they took a lot of lambs.
But a good study later, showed the eagles rarely took lambs, and if they did it was usually only sick ones - and even then, not very often.
The researchers found the eagle nests mostly contained rabbit bones, and rat bones, and the bones of small marsupials.
So we made this eagle chick a "nest", and fed him up on bits of meat, and he very quickly developed more feathers, and started walking around like he owned the place!
The cats and dogs absolutely crapped themselves whenever they spotted him, and they went and hid!
He never ever attacked anyone or anything though, he wasn't in the least bit aggressive.
The SIL named him "Samson" because he was strong and fearless, which he surely was!
When he started to get full feathers, he'd walk outside the house yard area, and run up and down the main yard, with his wings fully extended, and practising his flying! What a great sight!
We had 5 acres on the outskirts of a small wheatbelt town, and the road past our place only had low levels of traffic.
So then came the day he took to the air and flew a short distance! Then he decided he'd fly outside the front yard regularly, over the road, and then perch on the 500mm (18") above-ground water pipeline that ran past our place.
He'd perch there nearly all day, then fly back into our yard in the late afternoon to get fed.
It was funny watching the few local motorists drive past when he was perched on the water main, they couldn't believe this eagle just sat there, watching them!
Then came the day a couple of months later when he flew off to soar around. He'd soar around the local area for a while, then come back and perch on the pipeline - then come in looking for a feed.
He did this for a couple more months, then the visits got less and less - and then one day he flew off, and he never returned! I trust he found a mate, and lived a long and enjoyable life!
