PHILIPPINE EAGLE Pithecophaga jefferyi National Bird of the Philippines - Eagle Family January 2009 This short video was taken using a Nikon d90+ 50mm+ 20-60x eyepiece+ Swarovski ATM 80 HD+ Digital Camera Adapter+ Manfrotto gimbal head+ OSN Carbon 364 tripod.

It required a bit of uphill hiking to reach the ridge. It was a good thing we brought all our gear as the eagle was located across a valley on another mountain. Tim estimated that the eagles were around 300+ meters away. We shot thru grass, trees and leaves to get the eagle and her very young chick. If we moved two inches to the left or right we could not see the eagles, the viewing angle was that small. If we did not have our scopes it would be very difficult to see the eagles, even with binoculars. Due to the distance and the cloud cover that day the picture quality suffered. But its not everyday we get to see such a stunning bird and we were quite happy to have an chance to capture some images.

After packing up the rain fell down hard turning the trail into a river. It was slippery climbing down the trail with all the water gushing down covering the trail. Thank goodness for waterproof containers! The next day we went back and saw both adults flying. They showed up six times and seeing them in full flight was fantastic. Thanks to the Wild Bird Club of the Philippines, to Tim Fisher and also to Carlito and Danny for helping us find and video the rare Philippine Eagle. More pictures of this bird in the Philippine Eagle gallery