This golden eagle was captured on film last week making a meal of an unlucky ground squirrel.
This particular eagle, with strikingly blonde feathers on its nape, is familiar to many campus bird watchers. The eagle and her mate nest near campus and are regular visitors to the great meadow. According to Glenn Stewart of the Santa Cruz Predatory Bird Research Group, the pair has been using the great meadow as a favored place to hunt ground squirrels for more than two decades.
They may often be seen on high perches overlooking the meadow near Stevenson College and the UCSC Farm and Garden.
