golden eagle in ct

[ESOX FIX]

had 3 bald eagles eyeing my catch of the day a 15" pickerel from a near by hemlock. one started making some crazy noises and then flew away while the other two stayed put and didn't make a sound. suddenly the biggest raptor ive ever seen came into sight. as it came closer i could clearly see it was a golden eagle. circled the area a few times then vanished in the distance. unbelievable how BIG they are. nature is awesome.

[sawbelliesam]

It may have been an immature bald eagle, as they don't develop any white, head or tail, until their 5th year. They do however reach full adult size well before that. It could have been a golden, but they are much more uncommon in the east. In any event, a GREAT sighting regardless !!!

[ESOX FIX]

without question a golden eagle, its wing span was nearly twice that of a mature bald eagle.

[eiderz]

Had one snatch a bunker out of a school in my duck decoys a few years back, in a bay along the CT River. Quite a bit larger than the bald eagles in the area, a very impressive bird. I always thought they didn't eat fish, but this one did. We also see them at a hunting club in NY, every raptor in the area is hanging around looking for a pheasant dinner. My buddy has a photo of one, with a mature bald sitting on a branch on the opposite side of a tree, no comparison in size. We discussed whether the golden could carry off his little setter, she's only 20-some pounds. Probably not but it got our attention.

[Kierran]

What a cool sighting, Rich. Still waiting for my first. Good luck out there.

[Nysrx]

The easiest way to tell the difference between a immature bald and a golden is there feet. Golden has feathered feet and the bald is bare skinned feet usually yellowish in color .

[mikez]

Not a normal Ct forum guy but the golden eagle drew me in.
Unfortunately I have to rain on the parade.
Golden eagles are not larger than bald eagles. Bald eagles are actually slightly larger in wing span.
Golden eagles do not catch fish. Catching fish or hanging around where fish are to be had is a pretty sure indication of a bald eagle.
As with most raptors, females eagles are noticeably bigger than males.
From the link below:
"Bald eagles are larger than golden eagles in average height and wingspan, but there isn't much difference in average weight"

https://www.baldeagleinfo.com/eagle/eagle7.html