Last Thursday we were invited to see some sheep shearing before we went to the Bible study and prayer meeting at Elliston.
On our way up to the shed, travelling along a 16km lane, it was like driving through an Australian Safari! We saw wombats, emus, a fox, and various cool birds, including the magnificent Wedge-tailed eagle!
The Wedge-tailed eagle is the largest bird of prey in Australia and is the most common of all the world’s large eagles. It has long, fairly broad wings, fully feathered legs, and an unmistakable wedge-shaped tail. Because of both its tail and its size, it can be identified at a glance as a “Wedgie” even by the non-expert, like me.
It has a wingspan averaging over 2 m (7 ft) and an average length of around 1m (3 ft), and is closely related to the more well-known Golden eagle. However, it is larger than its cousin from the Northern Hemisphere.
I was a little disappointed with the weather when I took the shots. It had been bright and sunny only moments before, but turned dull when the shots were taken. However, I got a couple of decent captures.
It’s an amazing sight though. One man that attends the church in Elliston was telling me recently that a friend of his saw a Wedge-tailed eagle swooping down and flying off with a little Joey! In fact, Melanie has seen two so far, both feasting on dead kangaroos at the side of the road.
