The American Bald Eagle

Paul digas were once abundant throughout most of the continent north of Mexico but their numbers have been greatly reduced as they have been forced to retreat from advancing civilization to their last refuges in Alaska western canada and florida although this is the united states national bird it is facing the possibility of extinction conservationists have placed the bald eagle on the list of many endangered species Eagles are often found in pine wilderness such as this they build their nests 50 to 100 feet above the ground Eagles mate for life and usually return to the same tree each year unless they are disturbed each year they add to the nest sometimes as much as two feet of new sticks and other materials the nests may reach five to six feet across and sometimes become huge structures horn apologist such as the legendary Eagle man Charles broly have been studying these magnificent Birds for many years during his 20 years of work Rollie climbed some 800 of these tall nesting tree both in Florida and in his home province of Ontario Canada in order to reach the mess he first shot a fish line over a high branch to the end of the line he attached the rope with which he hauled his ladder up Roli was 58 when he began this work he was 74 years old when these pictures were taken rowley banded the young eagles in every tree that he climbed Crowley's work gave to conservationists a much clearer understanding of the life of the bald eagle because of the band's broly attached the later migrations of these Eagles could be traced but Broly never went near a net until the young were four or five weeks old he knew that to approach while the adults were building the nest for incubating the eggs might cause them to desert the tree for good it was once generally believed that bald eagles were year-round residents of their nesting area however he goes banded in Florida have later been found over a wide area as far north as Prince Edward Island on the east and Manitoba on the west northern birds from Ontario have turned up as far south as Tennessee and Alabama he gooth usually nest near the water for the staple of their diet is fish occasionally and eagle will take a small mammal a straggler from the flock of birds or even carry it but is their most common food a fact which led to their being hunted in the past before nineteen sixty two eagles were killed by the thousands in Alaska because they were mistakenly thought to diminish the supply of salmon because of their diet bald eagles are often mistaken for this bird the Osprey or fish hawk which is common throughout most of the Eagles range but the Osprey fishes in a very different way diving straight into the water while the eagle glides and snatches a fish from the surface hardly wedding it's feathered this paw spray is typically colored much lighter than the eagle and the Osprey does not have the same pure white head and tail as the mature eagle another of the Eagles neighbors in the south is the Roseate Spoonbill which nests in grape island colonies along with other birds phone bills were once almost destroyed by feather hunters but efforts at conservation have helped to increase their numbers especially here in Florida's Everglades National Park Samana war or frigate bird also shares the Eagles southern territory so it weighs only about three and a half pounds its wings Fred may reach seven and a half feet so it has great speed and great like the Eagle the frigate bird takes its food from the water it seeks out Turkish feeding fish and lifts them deftly from the water with a hook be hardly making a ripple these birds and many more live here in Everglades National Park there are dozens of eagle nests on the small mangrove islands here and in Florida Bay but no more than one nest to an island seagulls are very large bird often measuring three feet from Beach to tail weighing 10 to 13 pounds with a Wingspread of six to seven feet despite their great size eagles lay rather small egg about the size of a goose egg there are usually two eggs to a net and they take about six weeks to have both parents share the task of incubation one standing guard or off searching for food while the other is on the net for the first several weeks after hatching the male brings in most of the food but after that both parents must work hard to provide for the fast-growing heatless from the time they start fixing their nest to the time the young can care for themselves people spend almost six months here as in most net1 people it is larger and more developed than the other and the larger youngster usually begins X's on a flight first but it is not until they're almost three months old that they are ready to leave the nest the wings of these youngsters are now almost fully grown but not yet strong enough for flight note the sharply defined primary feathers extending like fingers from the tip of each wing young eagles all have this black brown from it until they are four years old when their beaks and eyes turn yellow and their heads and tails turn white but this first year of their lives will be the most dangerous of all partly because they are often shot by hunters who do not recognize seagulls are protected by law throughout their range yet ninety-six percent of the Bands returned to broli were taken from birds killed or found dead within four months of the time they were abandoned sunny Eagles recently found dead have been killed by insecticides such as dieldrin which are washed into the water by rainfall and build up in the fish which the Eagles eat in Florida another danger is severe storm this mangrove Island a year later looked like this the tree and nest were completely demolished by a hurricane the island was covered with seaweed and debris another problem for many Eagles is the great horned owl fiercest and most powerful of all the owl this bird never builds its own they're referring to take over the nest of an eagle or large hog it may arrive at the nesting area first or being a nocturnal bird it may also drive the Eagles away at night but man himself still poses the greatest threat not only does he shoot Eagles illegally and poison their food supply with pesticides but year after year he builds over and develops thousands of acres of age-old waterside habitat destroying it for wildlife southern eagles along with other Florida birds are forced to retreat in search of new nesting sites only to be confronted again by man leveling trees for roads airports and Newtown all living creatures are part of the ecological system which is essential to man's very survival but wild animals must have room to live when the natural habitat is destroyed the animals go with it some lumbering operations disrupt large areas which were once lush woodland teeming with wildlife in Alaska there are still some four thousand pairs of bald eagles but even here the habitat is being severely depleted by extensive lumbering operation the bald eagle ranges throughout much of this vast area from the treeless Aleutian Islands to the forest of Interior along the large glacial rivers that brush down from the snow-capped peaks thousands of eagles concentrate each fall gathering from hundreds of miles around to feed on the late runs of salmon they can be seen perched in the tree and scattered along the gravel beds beside the streams where the salmon make their late runs while the Atlantic salmon lives to spawn several times all five species of the Pacific salmon die after spawning only one as soon as they have deposited their eggs their bodies are swept downstream by the current and they become easy prey for the eagles and other scavengers taking a fish on the wing is needless effort the Eagles simply wade out in the water and pluck a fish as it drifts by in the spring when the Eagles are hatching they're young they must occasionally take a live fish on its way up Street but their food requirements then are my new compared to several weeks later when their young are growing large by that time the early runs of salmon have finished their spawning and dying fish are available to satisfy the Eagles needs for several decades a bounty was placed on the bald eagle in the mistaken belief that it drastically cut down the supply of salmon it is now recognized however that the vast majority of all salmon taken by he goes our dying fish that have already spawned at these fall gatherings Eagles may travel a hundred miles or more with their young to join in the feet along with great prongs of gulls Ravens and other scavengers goldeneye scarp and mallard ducks swim by or wattle out among the Eagles here such unlikely birds as Magpies and stellar jays are almost under the feet of the great bird but a month from now when the rivers freeze over and fish are scared all of these birds will avoid the Eagles which then become hunters and beachcombers along the open coastal walk sunfish and carrion cannot be found the Eagles may take small mammals but in winter they concentrate on stragglers from the flocks of ducks that are here by eliminating sick and weak birds eagles and other predators keep the flock in healthy condition and prevent starvation and disease not only are these northern egos more numerous than their southern cousins but they are also considerably larger the high percentage of immature birds found at these fall gatherings is proof of the ideal nesting habitat found here in the vast conifer forests of Alaska but the fact that eagles can still be counted by the thousands here in the northwest is no reason to relax efforts to perfect these birds once flight to passenger pigeons by the millions darken North American sky yet passenger pigeon like other species are extinct today the bald eagle king of American bird cannot survive without the help of every citizen this is the national bird of the United States and its numbers are decreasing without efforts to retain suitable habitats strict enforcement of protective laws and drastic reduction of the use of persistent pesticides he goes may soon be gone from their last refuges chosen as a national emblem about 200 years ago the eagle emblazoned Queenie currency stamps proclamations and the national team if it is to continue to spread its wings as a living symbol of freedom power and independence it will only be with the active health of every American