Watch Eagle Catch Fox and Bunny and Keep Bunny
In the San Juan Island National Historic Park in Washington State, photographers Kevin Ebi and Zachary Hartje caught an amazing eagle attack on video.
The foxes aren’t native to the area and were introduced by settlers in the 1900s to try to thin the numbers of European rabbits.
Ebi wrote on his blog, “The rabbits aren’t the foxes’ first choice for supper. They actually prefer insects, berries and voles.
“But the berries and voles have been displaced by the rabbits, which have clearcut the prairie with their vast burrows. While patches of flowers and red grasses make the prairie attractive at certain times of year, it’s actually an area of tremendous devastation.”
Ebi spent a few days watching the young fox, called kits, play around. When one fox caught a rabbit, a bald eagle decided it wanted the rabbit.
“To my surprise, the scene was even more dramatic than I expected,” said Ebi. “I thought the fox would drop the rabbit, giving the eagle an easy dinner.
“Instead, the fox, with its jaw still clenched on the rabbit, inadvertently got snagged by the bald eagle. The eagle lifted the young fox and rabbit into the sky triggering an even more dramatic struggle.” Watch below.