# Bald eagle drops deer on power lines-- is this real? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [June 21, 2011, 1:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bald-eagle-drops-deer-on-power-lines-is-this-real/586238 "2011-06-21T01:29:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 12\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2011, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bald-eagle-drops-deer-on-power-lines-is-this-real/586238/21 "2011-06-21T13:55:57Z")
I was just watching a video on [Cracked.com](http://Cracked.com) yesterday that showed eagles lifting up goats and dropping them. Yes, they can. > **[The 6 Most Disturbingly Evil Birds](https://www.cracked.com/article_19263_the-6-most-disturbingly-evil-birds.html)** > > Birds are the most majestic creatures on Earth -- we plaster them on our cars, flags and coins. You see them soaring up there, and think they're above all the petty savagery down here on the ground. Well, it turns out they're dicks. It’s #6 on the list. ---
**Author:** ![Munch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/munch/32/5281_2.png) [@Munch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Munch)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2011, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bald-eagle-drops-deer-on-power-lines-is-this-real/586238/22 "2011-06-21T14:16:38Z")
> [@RealityChuck](#): > > [Deer fauns](http://www.huntingnet.com/staticpages/staticpage_detail.aspx?id=37) weigh 6-8 pounds at birth, so a 15 pound eagle might be able to lift a very young one. Plus you have to factor in how much weight is lost after blood loss from injuries. Very possible. ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2011, 2:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bald-eagle-drops-deer-on-power-lines-is-this-real/586238/23 "2011-06-21T14:39:12Z")
Something that size is exacty what you would expect to find in that situation; light enough for the eagle to pick up but too heavy to get all the way back to the nest. ---
**Author:** ![Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hypnagogic_jerk/32/4252_2.png) [@Hypnagogic\_Jerk](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hypnagogic_Jerk)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2011, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bald-eagle-drops-deer-on-power-lines-is-this-real/586238/24 "2011-06-21T14:42:03Z")
> [@panache45](#): > > Next we’ll hear about cats killing 4-foot tunas. :rolleyes: Only after taking crystal meth. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2011, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bald-eagle-drops-deer-on-power-lines-is-this-real/586238/25 "2011-06-21T14:46:45Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > Based on what? Wings, presumably. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2011, 4:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bald-eagle-drops-deer-on-power-lines-is-this-real/586238/26 "2011-06-21T16:11:55Z")
> [@Anaamika](#): > > I was just watching a video on [Cracked.com](http://Cracked.com) yesterday that showed eagles lifting up goats and dropping them. Yes, they can. > > [The 6 Most Disturbingly Evil Birds | Cracked.com](http://www.cracked.com/article_19263_the-6-most-disturbingly-evil-birds.html) > > It’s #6 on the list. Note that the eagles are not actually “lifting” the goats. In two cases the eagle drags a goat off a cliff and allows it to fall to its death. In the other the eagle retains its hold on the goat and carries it downward in a controlled glide. In none of those sequences is the eagle actually gaining altitude. The bird is not able to rise in the air with something that heavy, although it can slow and control its fall. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2011, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bald-eagle-drops-deer-on-power-lines-is-this-real/586238/27 "2011-06-21T16:16:40Z")
> [@OttoDaFe](#): > > I think it depends on whether it was an African or European bald eagle. Ha! I saw what you did. . ---
**Author:** ![cantara](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/6f9a4e/32.png) [@cantara](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cantara)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2011, 4:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bald-eagle-drops-deer-on-power-lines-is-this-real/586238/28 "2011-06-21T16:21:23Z")
There was [disbelief](http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/environment/article4813644.ece) that eagles in Scotland would hunt live lambs. It is not so easily dismissed [anymore](http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1361000/Golden-eagle-clutches-lamb-Isle-Mull-razor-sharp-talons.html). I imagine the scene would have looked similar. ---
**Author:** ![Anaamika](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/5f9b8f/32.png) [@Anaamika](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Anaamika)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2011, 4:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bald-eagle-drops-deer-on-power-lines-is-this-real/586238/29 "2011-06-21T16:30:51Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > Note that the eagles are not actually “lifting” the goats. In two cases the eagle drags a goat off a cliff and allows it to fall to its death. In the other the eagle retains its hold on the goat and carries it downward in a controlled glide. In none of those sequences is the eagle actually gaining altitude. The bird is not able to rise in the air with something that heavy, although it can slow and control its fall. That whole article was very cool. My SO and I are almost always on the side of the birds in that sort of situation. ---
**Author:** ![Malacandra](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@Malacandra](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malacandra)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2011, 4:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bald-eagle-drops-deer-on-power-lines-is-this-real/586238/30 "2011-06-21T16:43:24Z")
It’s evolution in action. In a few generations eagles are going to be routinely killing their large prey by electrocution. Be afraid. ---
**Author:** ![Kevbo](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/e47774/32.png) [@Kevbo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kevbo)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2011, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bald-eagle-drops-deer-on-power-lines-is-this-real/586238/31 "2011-06-21T20:53:25Z")
> [@GreasyJack](#): > > It’s not like anyone saw the eagle drop it, but I don’t think there’s any real competing theory as to how the thing got up there. Now there is: Trebuchet! Run away! ---
**Author:** ![squidfood](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a87d85/32.png) [@squidfood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/squidfood)\ **Post date:** [June 21, 2011, 9:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bald-eagle-drops-deer-on-power-lines-is-this-real/586238/32 "2011-06-21T21:36:34Z")
> [@GreasyJack](#): > > It’s not like anyone saw the eagle drop it, but I don’t think there’s any real competing theory as to how the thing got up there. The squirrels are selling illegal nuts from a nearby tree. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/bald-eagle-drops-deer-on-power-lines-is-this-real/586238.md?page=1)