On Wednesday, a strange and surreal scene played out along US-74 in Swain County, just past the border of our home state of North Carolina near Bryson City. A bald eagle literally dropped a cat carcass directly onto the windshield of an oncoming car! The motorist was navigating the small country roads that surround the immensely popular Great Smoky Mountains National Park. This area, lovingly referred to as “the Valley,” is located roughly 65 miles southwest of Asheville.
The driver, who was passing through on the major interstate highway, placed a 911 call within minutes of the bizarre encounter. Days after the call, he told us in astonishment about what had just happened. The dispatcher listened intently as the driver exclaimed, “You may not believe me, but I just had a bald eagle drop a cat through my windshield.”
As the story developed, it was determined that the cat must have already been a carcass when it hit the passenger side of the front windshield. The reason for the impact with the vehicle was purely accidental. Luckily, the driver was not injured, but it was an alarming close call. The driver was still unpacking the incident to the dispatcher, telling him just how dumbfounded he was by the whole matter.
“He’s like, ‘That is the craziest thing I’ve ever seen.’ I’m like, ‘Really?’” – the driver
How exactly the bald eagle came to drop the cat is still a mystery. It is impossible to tell if the animal fell from the eagle’s talons or was dropped on purpose. The motivations behind such an action by a wild bird are a mystery.
This rare event serves as a reminder of the unexpected nature of wildlife encounters. It’s a reminder of the special adventures that are waiting to happen whenever we travel through North Carolina’s beautiful scenic byways. Once additional information is available, wildlife specialists will continue to explore the unusual behaviors exhibited by bald eagles. Their goal is to provide a clearer picture of this unusual occurrence.