Bald Eagle Webcam

[AK49er]

Got the news this afternoon... WE HAVE TWINS! We have been watching juniors head above the nest for awhile now but until this afternoon that's all we have seen. He/she jumped onto the top rim today and about 2 mins. later his twin also jumped on the rim. Cool. Due to the sheer size of the nest, app. 7 ft across and 3 ft deep, we could only see the top of their heads until today. The last 4 or 5 years there has only been a single so its nice to see twins again. No wonder mom and dad have been fishing so hard in the river all year. Hopefully they both survive from now until their maiden voyage, due to the fact that one could push the other out of the nest in order to get more food from the folks. Last years Eaglet left the nest on Sept. 11, so we'll see what happens this year. Cool!

[AK49er]

Came back from camping on Sunday after being gone 4 days and found 1 Eaglet left in the nest. Seems about 2 weeks early to have them gone by now so started to think that one had fallen out of the nest or was pushed out by the other, as it does happen. I walked down the hill today and found the other about 8' down from the nest hanging on a branch! He had to have been there at least 30 hours. One hour later he took flight! Either the folks couldn't feed him there or it was his time to go, but he left. Wish we had a trail cam set up so that we could have seen how he really ended up on that lower small branch. About 2 more weeks and we will be empty nesters.

[markopolo]

So, I'm guessing he'd return to the nest at some point or is he gone for good?

[AK49er]

What we have seen in the past is once they fly they don't return. The parents stay around the nest for a week or so after the Eaglets are gone, maybe to check and see if the kids have really left. After this time we don't see them at the nest until early spring for a little home renovation before eggs are laid. By our observation, I still think he left a couple weeks early, I guess we'll see after the last one takes flight.

[AK49er]

New Eaglet update...Junior has returned! They are both in the nest now and one of them is eating fish like there's no tomorrow. This is a first for us, to see one return after leaving the nest is pretty cool. So why did he come back? We know he can fly, is it just for the food that he gets and will the next two weeks or so really help him mature? I suspect he will be the first to really leave for good and I will post the date that happens.

[AK49er]

Eagle has landed...on the riverbank that is! One immature left yesterday and the other today this AM. He left about 8am and promptly flew to the riverbank below the house. He played around in the water for about an hour, walking and strutting on the bank like he owned the joint, then flew away. About 8 months from now the story starts all over, its been fun.

[Mike]

Thanks for following the story and adding the updates.
Nature isn't always your friend, but it certainly has it's moments.

We had a close encounter yesterday morning in Port Hawkesbury, NB.
My sharp eyed copilot spotted one (mature) on the shore of the Strait of Canso in a smallish fir tree. We guessed he/she was just scanning the water for breakfast.
Looped back along the busy road and watched for a few minutes until he/she spotted us and flew off. Absolutely huge and impressive beyond words to we who see them so seldom.

[AK49er]

Yes mike, they are amazing and fun to watch. When we are home we look through the spotting scope and bino's at least a hundred times a day. Our scope sets on a table focused on the nest from May till September. BTW... good to see you back on here, missed your humor!

[booster]

Around here the bald eagles are expanding their range quickly. They are living in the burbs of the Mpls/St Paul area and one built a nest a few years ago only a little ways off the highway. They have been back every year since. We are 10 miles from the river, but see them over the house more regularly every year.

[Mike]

The section of highway in New Brunswick between Calais, ME and Moncton, NB has several lines of high tension power line towers, and they are rife with huge nests. We also spotted some smaller ones in the same general area that appeared to belong to some Osprey. We saw a few of them perched on or near the nests. Again on power line towers.
Hard to tell if they had built them or just moved in when vacated by their larger cousins.

"sense of humor"
When surfing the net, don't leave home without it, or your flak jacket.

[Davydd]

We have an annual nest on Big Island in Lake Minnetonka. We frequently see eagles over our house. Last weekend we were up at a small 90 acre lake in northern Minnesota and watched the interplay between loons and eagles. The eagles do decimate the loon's nest eggs but they have a much more difficult time getting at the adult loons.

If you want to see lots of eagles and visit their respective interpretive centers, Haines, AK and Wabasha, MN are the places to go. Homer, AK on the Spit used to be the place but since the eagle lady died the city has banned feeding the eagles. They were around but nothing like in the past. Alaska has the most eagles by far. In the lower 48 Minnesota leads by a great margin.

[markopolo]

Two years ago I thought I had spotted eagles in their nest atop transmission line poles one street over from where we live.

2012


This year, I can see that they are Osprey's.





The nest looks smaller this year.

I had the pleasure of meeting Mike and his wife today. I knew that they would be passing by this area on their trip. We were out for a walk when I saw a Roadtrek go by that was the right model and age of Mike's unit and mentioned to my wife that I wondered if it was Mike. Sure enough it was. Very nice to put a face to a name and great of him to take the time to stop by. Super nice couple

[Mike]

Aw, shucks, what a nice thing to say about two weary travelers, lost in the Maritimes, that happened upon an oasis of class b hospitality.
I would add "ditto" to your sentiment.
Our esteemed Admin and his best half are also two of the nicest people we've met on our travels.

Many thanks,
M&L.

p.s. thanks for not mentioning the "Mike seemed a bit strange" part.

[AK49er]

I bet that was a party to end all parties. Now that you have met marko in person Mike, is he really only 5' 3" tall?

[Mike]

He is an eagle among ospreys.

[markopolo]

Such a diplomat!

[markopolo]

It's not easy to get good photos of birds at a distance. I'd need a much better camera.



It gets windy around here so it's pretty amazing that the nest stays up there. (same nest as the other photos)

[Davydd]

Here is an eagle at its nest in Voyageurs National Park in Minnesota I took last year. I have lots of photos of eagles and eagles nests but it is difficult to get shots with an eagle in the photo since once the babies fly none of them hang around the nest all that close during the day. Some nests get huge because every year they add on to them.

[Mike]

Made it to the National Eagle Center in Wabasha, MN in between van repairs.
I didn't expect it to be right in the heart of the town, and I guess I thought it would be bigger.
Still, the 5 captive eagles they have (one Golden, 4 Bald) were quite happy to entertain those visitors who entered their tiny realm. It's such a shame to see such magnificent raptors in captivity, but the alternative is worse from a life or death perspective. They were all quite animated on and off, and all seemed perfectly healthy. I'm sure they would have all preferred to fly free to scan the adjacent river for fish, or the nearby forests and fields for other prey.

[Davydd]

Mike, all those eagles are incapable of surviving in the wild and they can't fly free. They don't keep healthy eagles in captivity. The real show is outside and spectacular in late winter because that is the first place where the frozen over Mississippi River stays open all winter. I have one photo where I could count 40+ eagles in trees.