February 05, 2006
Photos and Survey
Nest Update: The eagles got a little rain at the end of the month, but altogether January was mild for them with no snow and above normal temperatures. We'll have to see if February brings more winter-like weather to the region. Just a reminder: We expect the eggs to hatch around February 21 and 23.
Thanks to everyone for the Gallery shots this week. We had a couple photos where we clearly saw the sitting parent removing oil from the gland at the base of their tail. The oil is put on the feathers for waterproofing and cleaning.
Also we saw nice shots of the nest cup. It's interesting to see how the eagles have made a nest within a nest, where the nest cup creates a little protected area for the eggs inside their bigger home.
As for sequence shots, we saw an interesting pair of photos where it looked like one adult put grass on the other, then the sitting parent got up off the eggs and the other parent started putting the grass around the nest cup. And in another pair of photos we saw the eagles doing a little nest building at night. What was interesting is that eagles do not have superior night vision, yet they were rearranging sticks when it was dark and there was almost no light from the moon.
2006 Mid-Winter Eagle Survey
On a slightly different topic, last month 26 volunteers and 8 Fish and Wildlife Service employees contributed their time to help us successfully complete our 2006 Mid-Winter Eagle Survey at Blackwater Refuge. The mid-winter survey is something we do each year as part of a bigger survey of the eagle population in the Chesapeake Bay region. Here are the numbers from Blackwater Refuge --
Non-Roost Count AM
Bald Eagles
Immature: 48
Mature: 62
Golden Eagles:
Mature: 2
Unknown: 17
Total: 129
Top spot was our Wildlife Drive with 23 eagles. Golden eagles were sighted at the Wildlife Drive and Shorter's Wharf
Roost Count AM
Bald Eagles
Immature: 35
Mature: 52
Golden Eagles: 0
Unknown: 20
Total: 107
Top spot was Rte 335 Bridge with 44 eagles. Non-roost count numbers were slightly higher this year. Roost count numbers were slightly lower this year. [Note that weather conditions can influence how many eagles are seen during the survey times.]
So if you get to visit the Refuge during the winter, remember that the Wildlife Drive and the Rte 335 Bridge are good places to spot eagles. If you're really lucky, you might even get to see the rarer Golden Eagle.
Until next time,
Lisa - webmaster
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