Watch sneaky mama owl use trick to scare off hungry bald eagle at Georgia golf course
Bald eagles have an 8-foot wing span compared to 4.6 feet for great horned owls, so there is no such thing as a fair fight among the two species.
However, wise owls have tricks, an example of which was recorded recently at a golf course near Savannah, on the Georgia coast.
The video, shared Feb. 8 by the Georgia Wildlife Resources Division, shows a mama owl was keeping her eggs toasty warm when a hungry bald eagle began circling.
It’s clearly an “oh-heck-no” moment. The annoyed owl wastes no time locking a parental gaze on the eagle, spinning her head around like a bottle cap.
The eagle was not intimidated, however, and is seen lowering its talons as if to glide in for a quick bite.
That’s when owl suddenly balloons its feathers, transforming into a creature that is triple in size.
The startled eagle darts away.
“A bald eagle flying a little too close for comfort!” Georgia Department of Natural Resources officials explained.
“The female successfully wards off the eagle by fluffing out her feathers and raising her body and wings to make herself as intimidating as possible.”
The encounter lasted just seconds, and involved two birds of prey that are both fierce hunters.
It was filmed by the Cornell Lab Bird Academy on a camera set up at the Palmetto Course at The Landings Club on Skidaway Island. Cornell Lab officials say multiple species have staked a claim to the nesting spot over alternating seasons, including bald eagles and osprey.
A pair of great horned owls took it over in January, and will likely stay for up to four months until their eggs hatch and the owlets are old enough to go off on their own, experts say.
The video has been viewed nearly 7,000 times in the past day on Facebook, and gotten hundreds of reactions, with some noting you “don’t mess with Momma.”
“My money is on the owl,” one man wrote.
This story was originally published February 8, 2022 at 2:41 PM with the headline "Watch sneaky mama owl use trick to scare off hungry bald eagle at Georgia golf course."