[willturman]

> “We’re used to seeing America’s national bird depicted as a majestic hero plucking wild salmon from pristine streams. But here you can see eagles for what they really are: scrappy, opportunistic feeders. If fresh fish isn’t available, the birds will eat seagulls, ducks, squirrels, mice, the occasional raven, bits of rotten meat dug out of the trash—or, in one case, a piece of pepperoni pizza snatched out of a teenager’s hand. Like us, eagles are adaptable. We should be proud.” [1]

America’s national symbol reduced to dumpster diving and fast food. It scans.

[1]https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/article/explore-...

[enjo]

I live pretty close to a couple of bald eagles in central Denver. I have seen one of them mixing it up with the other birds to get table scraps left behind by people using the park. I have no idea what they are eating generally but sometimes they are pretty happy to just grab some bread on the ground or whatever.

[dghlsakjg]

They are scavengers. They eat what is available.

Up here in western Canada if you want to see A LOT of eagles you go to the dump. They love it there.

[bluedino]

Didn't Benjamin Franklin suggest the Turkey instead?

[dekhn]

Not exactly: https://fi.edu/en/science-and-education/benjamin-franklin/na...

I used to think this was crazy, but after I met a few turkeys and bald eagles I concluded he was right (and further, that it would have made a great national bird0.

[mikestew]

Probably a myth:

https://fi.edu/en/science-and-education/benjamin-franklin/na...

[beeflet]

IDK how comfortable people would be eating the national bird every thanksgiving

[lupusreal]

What better bird to memorialize than one that people love to eat? It could be the national bird and national meal at the same time.

[yen223]

Ask the French, who has the rooster as the national bird

[mikestew]

Considering that the taste is much like bald eagle, I think folks might be comfortable reversing the two.

[zoky]

Reminds me of that joke about the guy who is on trial for killing a bald eagle, and he tells the judge that it was a life-or-death situation: He was lost in the woods, and after several weeks without food he luckily happened upon a bald eagle that he managed to trap and eat to avoid starvation. The judge says, “Well, in that case, we can let you go. But tell me, what does a bald eagle taste like?”

“Oh, sort of a cross between a spotted owl and a California condor.”

[kulahan]

Surely the primarily meat-eating eagle would taste different from the primarily bug/seed eating turkey, no?

[mikestew]

Not in the universe in which this joke takes place, no.

[shermantanktop]

When given a choice between universes, choose the funnier one. Unless the joke is on you…

[kulahan]

If only there was a universe where I got it lol…

[Loughla]

Where I live the bald eagle takes the place of the black vulture in the winter.

There is something kind of wrong about watching a bald eagle eat a road kill raccoon.

[gerdesj]

"There is something kind of wrong about watching a bald eagle eat a road kill raccoon."

Why? The bald eagle is a ... bird wot eats meat. If the meat dies by other means and involves no effort then cool - dive in and tuck in. I'll grant you - its not for me!

Look at the constraints and restrictions and opportunities for birds. Yes they can fly (why do they fly). Flying requires huge amounts of energy. It needs the body to be "light" which isn't helpful for a predator that might encounter resistance - feathers turn out to be quite a good armour, along with some fancy footwork and some very fancy bone structures help with the weight issue.

The talons and beak are superb adaptations too. Horrid to watch in action but that's what they do.

Try and imagine yourself in the place of your hero bird. It has a sodding hard and quite short life. Now try and imagine how it strives to stay alive and be that symbol you love to think of - it does not care what you think about its diet! It strives to stay alive and that is really hard - even for an apex predator.

[whythre]

I don’t really think it is ‘wrong,’ or even really unexpected. In the winter, fish may not a viable food option for the eagles due to ice or fish lifecycle. Birds of prey have to keep their weight low, and they don’t have the option to gorge themselves on a kill like a wolf or a lion can. Most birds of prey are only a few missed meals away from death by starvation.

Winter’s scarcity is deadly for predators, and nature doesn’t care about maintaining nobility or the optics of a dead raccoon lunch.

[wiredfool]

I disturbed a bald eagle eating a road kill deer by driving by one time.

You know how crows and other birds will take off and look like they're going to hit your car? Now imagine it with a bird with a 6 foot wingspan.

[jjulius]

>... bits of rotten meat dug out of the trash-or, in one case, a piece of pepperoni pizza snatched out of a teenager's hand.

The article makes it clear that they're inherently "scrappy and opportunistic". You can change the items to match any time period - what about snatching food from a settler's hand, or sneaking a bite of rotten meat a native might have lying around? That's fundamentally the same thing as grabbing food out of a dumpster.

For as much shit as I talk about the state of this country, I'm struggling to use what is, ostensibly, just a bird eating food out of a dumpster as some kind of example of our decline.