國立自然科學博物館

大冠鷲及黑枕藍鶲皆為臺灣特有亞種且生活在中低海拔林間，前者尤其喜食蛇類，又名「蛇鵰」，繁殖期在3至6月間，每巢產卵一枚，孵卵期約35天，孵出後經過60~75天才長成離巢，巢位有重複使用的現象，甚至有使用舊的巢材基礎之狀況；後者以昆蟲為主食，繁殖季主要是在4至7月間，一窩通常三枚卵，由雌雄親鳥分擔孵卵與育幼的責任，約13-14天雛鳥破殼而出，經10天后長成離巢。 大冠鷲及黑枕藍鶲二者體型殊異：前者身長:70~75公分，後者體長約15公分；但繁殖期巢區高度重迭。2017年5月，在台南白河意外發現一對大冠鷲築巢於橫跨兩峭壁的樹木上，大冠鷲返巢育雛時，驚嚇到不遠處同為育雛中的黑枕藍鶲親鳥，母鳥為護巢，不畏體型上的劣勢，起身振翅,揮舞著利爪,周旋在大冠鷲四周,來回不下七八趟。就算龐然大鳥犀利的眼神如利劍般射來,黑枕藍鶲母鳥仍像飛蛾撲火般沖上前去與之正面交鋒, 義無反顧,發了瘋以地鼓噪著--「回！回！回！」為了各自幼雛,雙方皆義無反顧,挺身護仔。急促的吶喊聲,道盡了自然界「為母則強」的勇敢與韌性。也見證了大自然界親鳥為護巢以小搏大的傳說..

Crested Serpent Eagle and Black-naped Monarch are endemic subspecies of Taiwan and live in forests of low and medium altitude. The former is particularly fond of feeding on snakes, hence the name "serpent eagles". Their breeding period is from March to June and only one egg is laid in each nest. The hatching period is about 35 days, and after another 60 to 75 days they will leave the nest. There is the phenomenon of repeated use of their nest, and even exists the condition of using the old nest material as foundation. The latter feeds mainly on insects. The breeding season is mostly from April to July. One nest usually has three eggs, and the male and female share the responsibility of incubating and rearing. After about 13 to 14 days, the chicks emerge from the shell, and after 10 days they leave the nest. The Crested Serpent Eagle and the Black-naped Monarch are very different in size: the former is 70 to 75 cm long and the latter is about 15 cm in length; however, their nesting areas in the breeding period often overlap. In May 2017, a pair of Crested Serpent Eagles was accidentally spotted to be nesting on a tree across two cliffs in the Taihe Baihe. When the Crested Serpent Eagles returned to their nest to feed the nestling, they scared the brooding Black-naped Monarch not far away. The small female bird stood up, flapped its wings, and swirled around the eagle for several times, waving its claws, trying to protect the nest, not afraid of its disadvantage in size. Even though the giant bird's sharp eyes shot at her like a sharp sword, the female bird still rushed forward to confront it, like a moth flying into the fire, madly squawking -"Back! Back! Back!" For the sake of their youngsters, both sides guarded fearlessly. The fierce squawks fully demonstrated the motherly bravery and resilience in nature, and acted as the witness of the legend where parents fight against all threats to protect their children regardless of their strength difference.

大冠鷲一般喜歡築巢於樹冠層要拍攝完整的育雛畫面實屬不易,2017年5月臺南白河鳥友傳來一則喜訊,一對冠蛇鵰築巢於一枝傾倒橫跨於兩峭壁的樹木上,該樹木又緊鄰果園,經與果農溝通後我們以不干擾為原則在適當的距離搭起了偽裝帳,紀錄了大冠鷲育雛畫面,我們使用全幅相機搭配500-600mm焦段鏡頭,高ISO配合高速快門,躲在偽裝帳內全程屏氣凝神..為了就是要捕捉一天僅會餵食4~6次的餵食畫面,在拍攝過程中意外捕獲育雛中的黑枕藍鶲親鳥,為保護自己的巢穴勇敢的挑贊大冠鷲母鳥, 不畏體型上的劣勢，振翅舞爪，發出宏亮似「回！回！回！」的急促叫聲驅趕大冠鷲,最終逼得大冠鷲喂完食後迅速飛到對面枝頭上。影像透過PHOTOSHOP軟體圈選主體調整明亮與飽和度來增家影像的立體度。

The Crested Serpent Eagle usually likes to build their nest in treetops. It is not easy to shoot a complete brooding scene. In May 2017, a good news came from the fellow bird lovers of Tainan Baihe. A pair of Crested Serpent Eagles nested on a tree that fell and bridged two cliffs, which was right next to an orchard. After communicating with the orchard workers, we set up a camouflage tent at an appropriate distance under the principle of non-interference, and recorded the brooding scenes of those Crested Serpent Eagles. We used a full-frame camera with a 500-600mm focal length lens, a high ISO and a high-speed shutter, hiding in the tent holding our breaths, just to capture the feeding scene that only happens 4 to 6 times a day. During the process we accidentally captured the breeding Black-naped Monarch challenging the serpent eagles to protect their nest, unafraid of the size difference, flapping its wings and claws and squawking to chase off the eagles, and in the end, the Crested Serpent Eagles was forced to fly onto the branches on the opposite side right after feeding. The image later used Photoshop to circle out the focus and adjust brightness and saturation to enhance its dimension.