This species at this age throws off a lot of people. Many are quick to call it a golden eagle, and I’ll confess that I’ve made that mistake before. Others might think it’s a large hawk, or even a discolored vulture. The first guess is the closest, though they’re all wrong; once this raptor reaches about four or five years old and its eagle pattern baldness takes over, it will be more obvious. In the intermediary stage between its juvenile and adult patterns, this bald eagle is probably around three years old.
That plumage, combined with its upright posture and steely eye, makes it look like this teenaged eagle is decked out in chain mail like an Arthurian knight in the midst of accepting a quest from its liege-lord. Will it slay a dragon or rescue a damsel?
More likely, it will eviscerate a fish while making unexpected noises. But, you know. It will do so nobly.
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