Capitol Reef National Park: The Golden Eagle

Capitol Reef is Utah's least visited but second largest national park. The long and narrow strip of land protects an unusual phenomenon, a wrinkle in the earth's crust. And though descriptive, unlike Arches and Canyonlands, you can't take its name literally. It is not, as I was mistakenly led to believe, a fossilized reef like you can find at Guadalupe Mountains National Park. It is named "reef" because of the barrier qualities it shares with a reef, which is to say it makes a good obstacle to travel. The name "capitol" is derived from a white dome in the park that looks like the Capitol Dome in Washington DC if you look at it from the wide side. In reality, it's not a dome but a fin.

This fold in the earth's crust has eroded into a landscape where rock formations strut straight out of the earth. In the most spectacular regions of the park, like Cathedral Valley, the formations stand in stark contrast to the surrounding flat terrain. Thanks to the arid landscape (dry air is clearer than humid air), panoramic views, and these high vantage points, keen eyesight can be a significant advantage, as it is for the eagle-eyed golden eagle.

One of North America's top ten largest birds, with its 7-foot wingspan, the golden eagle is a predator. To be a successful predator, it's important to have a keen ability to detect prey. Bats do it with sonar, venus flytraps do it with touch, electric eels do it with electric fields, and eagles do it the old-fashioned way, by eye, but with an exceptional eye. The golden eagle can spot prey the size of a rabbit from 1 to 3 miles away. It takes a human 15 to 20 minutes to walk a mile; imagine being able to spot a rabbit 20 minutes before you arrive at its location. Fortunately, the golden eagle is looking down on that prey and can also dive at 150 mph, so it's able to close that gap quite fast. Thanks to the unique geographical features, golden eagles reign over the region and, though challenging to spot, make great ambassadors for Capitol Reef NP.