In general I wouldn’t interfere with nature taking it’s course. I’m not sure how I would react in that particular case though, the fisherman were close by, the eagle was putting up a struggle, I might do what they did.
While bass fishing in Mexico a few years ago, we came across a very large bass (about 8 lbs.) that was floating on the water, with a fairly large tilapia fish stuck in its throat. Both fish were still alive, but if left alone, they would have both died. We intervened and pulled the tilapia from the bass’ mouth and released them both.
It would never even occur to me to get involved. Not out of any ethical stance, but just that they are wild animals and I’m not going to risk anything to get involved. I wouldn’t know what to expect would happen to me.
If I actually had experience with the animals in question, I might think otherwise. But, as is, it would just be kinda “I’m in my world, and they’re in theirs.”
That actually sounds like a decent meal – tilapia stuffed bass.
T’were it any other kind of eagle, I’d have left it alone. But as a USAian, it IS after all National Bird, so I probably would have done what I could for it.
And frankly, I don’t think the octopus would’ve gotten much of a meal for the injuries it would have sustained. Eventually it would have gotten within reach of that beak. I’d be worried the tie would be of the “both dead” variety.
Whereas, the octopus is not the National Mollusk. I don’t even think we have a National Mollusk. Although certain factions in California would be quick to nominate the Banana Slug.
Any possible way that confrontation could have started, leaves it squarely in the territory of the eagle being at fault. It had to have been too stupid, too aggressive, too greedy, or some combination of all three. If it’s so stupid/aggressive/greedy as to drown fighting an octopus, let it.
Punchline to a ‘Chihuahua Vs. Pit-Bull’ joke.
Tonight’s specials: Turducken, balapia.
- Ha! “Turducken” is a word! It doesn’t get the red squiggly underline of a misspelled word
For millenia the octopodes and the accipitridae have maintained their uneasy truce, living very much at arms length. Now it seems that their fragile truce has been shattered! Dark days lay ahead my friends.
I’m surprised to hear baldies described as endangered. Around dams outside of Chicago, come winter they are almost as common as pigeons. My sister near St L has a nesting pair in her backyard. And when we went to Alaska, they were all over the place. Not saying we should have an open season on them, but they definitely are a protection success story.
I’ve always had a respect for cephalopods. Really neat animals which - I have heard - also face some environmental stresses.
In this instance, I probably woulda done what the fishermen did. Their intervention was pretty gentle. I doubt that interaction woulda ended well for either participant. Not an expert in octopus mouthparts, but not sure how it woulda gotten a good meal outta the bird. Failure to intervene woulda had no benefit other than a dead bird. The octopus coulda been hurt by the eagle, and or coulda been stressed by the encounter. I woulda stopped intervening, tho, if it had appeared likely to have caused the octopus any stress/harm.
Well, they can eat crabs with that beak so I suspect a few feathers aren’t going to be much of an obstacle. They’re also way smarter than anything without bones should be. I suspect the octopus would have prevailed in the end. I’m not sure I would have intervened. Nature, red in tooth and claw.
Spined creatures stick together!
Yeah - I just wasn’t sure about the SIZE of the potential meal. Didn’t know if octopuses(pi?) generally pursue such large prey, and suspect potential stress/injury from same. Do they kill large prey and then nip off bites w/ their beak? Solely exposing my ignorance.
Our state mollusk is the Quahog.
Will the octopus suckers work on feathers?
Raptors are made of knives. If the ocotopus can figure it out, he’s having eagle for dinner. I’ll just stand by and be amazed.
podes
I’m far from an expert, but I do seem to recall several sources of varying reliability all agreeing that the correct plural form is not entirely clear cut.
My recent quick google turned up a snarky entry saying something like “no one uses podes outside of arguments over the plural, do cut it out!” 
The plural depends on how many of them there are. One is one octopus, two of them is one hexadecopus, three of them is one icositettaropus, etc.
Don’t fall for it! Those are the same people who think it’s perfectly cromulent to say irregardless and nucular. They have huge egos, and useless penes.