Spying On The Nesting Bald Eagles At Barton Island

By Dottie Evans

The eagle is hunkered down in the middle of her large nest of twigs and sticks. Her white head blends into the whiteness of new snow that has recently fallen across her back and shoulders. A slight breeze ruffles her feathers as she slowly swivels her head to look left and right. Otherwise, she does not move at all. The nest sways in the wind. It looks very cold and bleak but we know there is at least one egg underneath there that the eagle is keeping warm and safe. And maybe she will lay another one while we are watching.

The eagle egg-watch is on again atop an old dead pine tree on Barton Island in the middle of the Connecticut River and thanks to Northeast Utilities, we all have a front row seat.

Some of us just cannot get enough of eagle watching.

From December to mid-March we have made pilgrimages to the eagle observation facility that the utility company constructed in Southbury high over Lake Zoar a decade ago. From 1,000 feet away, we watched a group of wintering bald eagles soar across the river, roost in the pine trees on the opposite shore, or dive for fish below the Shepaug Dam where the churning turbines keep the river ice-free.

Now those Shepaug Dam eagles have dispersed and flown to their mating grounds up north.

But again thanks to the Northeast Utility Company, we are ready to see the next stage –– eagles nesting and laying eggs, eagle chicks hatching, eating and fledging.

Instead of a 1,000-foot view we will have a much closer encounter. An overhead bird’s-eye video camera installed by the utility company on its protected island refuge in the middle of the Connecticut River is trained directly on the eagles’ large nest of twigs and sticks.

The utility company has placed the camera in such a way that it does not disturb the eagles, and we are allowed to see all the activity around the nest as though we were perched in a branch directly above them. The live streaming video image of the eagles is continuous from dawn to dusk so there is nothing to stop us from seeing anything and everything the eagles are doing –– except maybe our regular lives and responsibilities that intervene.

Sitting in front of our computer monitors, we have our own personal eye on the Barton Island bald eagles. All we need do is log on to the website, www.nu.com, click on Eagles Online, and put everything else on hold. It is a daily infusion of wildness that is not to be missed –– despite the grainy picture and slightly jerky movements.

Many of us have enjoyed watching the famous Barton Island eagles raise several families during the years 1995 through 2004, and we know that every year brings some new drama, and not every year is a successful one.

 

Good And Bad Years Alike

In 1990, only a single chick was fledged. The following winter, the nest spilled from the tree under the weight of accumulated snows.

The eagle pair returned in 1991 and constructed a new nest in a large, dead white pine not far from the original site and they were able to raise two chicks successfully. The eagles enjoyed continued nesting success in the dead pine tree through 1996. In 1993 and 1996, a third chick, hatched in captivity, was introduced and accepted by the parents.

But 1997 was a disaster. An April Fool’s snowstorm dumped more than 20 inches of heavy, wet snow on the nest where the pair was trying to incubate its clutch of eggs. The snow proved too much for the eagles, and they failed to produce young for the first time.

Since 1997, the pair has alternated between success and failure, fledging a single chick in 1998; failing in 1999; producing two young in 2000; failing again in 2001; and fledging two chicks in 2002, one in 2003, and two again in 2004.

The traditional nest in the dead pine tree remains intact, and supporting lines have been reattached to stabilize the trunk and minimize sway. The photovoltaic panel that powers the remote camera and transmitter is running smoothly, with cables and connections checked and secured. Eagle Cam partners are optimistic that the tree and nest will provide support through the upcoming 2005 nesting season, and that the weather will cooperate.

 

So Far, 2005 Looks

Promising

Despite this winter’s frigid temperatures, the bald eagles that reside under the watchful eye of the eagle cam began their nesting season cycle in early February. The pair has remained in the vicinity of its nest throughout the winter, venturing up and down river in search of open water where they hunt and scavenge for fish, ducks, and carrion.

On March 3 the first egg was laid, as the pair continued to bring new nesting material, including sticks, grasses, and green sprigs from pine boughs. Another egg is due sometime this weekend and there may be a third egg laid sometime next week. We might catch a glimpse of the egg(s) as the eagles take turns sitting on the nest –– changing places.

After a 35-day incubation period, the eggs should begin to hatch — if the adults are attentive and the weather does not interfere. The eggs will hatch in the order in which they were laid.

From April through July, the chicks will develop quickly, growing from hatchlings weighing mere ounces to full-grown eagles, tipping the scales at between 9 and 11 pounds. Changes through the eaglets’ various developmental stages are dramatic even to the casual eagle cam viewer.

Scientists feels the future for the bald eagle is hopeful, both in southern New England and across the country. Twelve eagle territories are known in Massachusetts and six in neighboring Connecticut where less than 15 years ago there were none.

In 2001, these pairs produced a total of 13 chicks that survived to fledge. At the national level, the eagle has been reclassified from an endangered species to a threatened species and will be removed from the Federal Endangered Species list in the foreseeable future, this in response to a population recovery from just over 400 eagle pairs in the lower 48 states when the eagle was first declared endangered, to nearly 6,000 pairs today.

As of August 2004, the Barton Island territory has been responsible for 21 young eagles joining the northeastern US population. Many of these young have survived to maturity, paired with other eagles, and set up their own nesting territories.