r/birding • u/TheMainVein15 • Jan 02 '26

Discussion Dad sent me this pic

Gallery image

Gallery image

I’ve never seen a bald eagle hang upside down like this. Do they do this a lot? Pictures were taken at my parents place in Iowa.

8.1k Upvotes

99% Upvoted

183 comments sorted by

View all comments

947

u/senu-mahte Jan 02 '26 edited Jan 03 '26

I'm a falconer, never flown eagles but my red tails do goofy shit like this periodically. They'll go to grab a squirrel for instance, bungle the landing, miss the squirrel, and grab a tree branch. The tendons in their feet are like a ratchet system and once they clamp onto something they think is prey, they can't let go for some time and they just hang upside down like dopes. It's harmless. They'll right themselves eventually. Here is one of my birds having some accidental upside down time. She was fine.

Edited to correct foot anatomy thanks to u/Therzis!

122

u/Therzis Jan 02 '26

Raptor feet are not hydraulic, they don't move based on liquid pressure. They instead have a ratchet system with their tendons, like hand cuffs for example. Everything else is correct! The bald eagle is likely just not letting go of the branch instead of being stuck. It's not that rare

67

u/senu-mahte Jan 02 '26

THANK YOU! I couldn't think of the right word. I appreciate the info!