Wednesday, October 15, 2014

When will Mom and Dad...

When will Mom and Dad work on the nest? When will Mom and Dad mate? Are the eagles in Florida going to lay eggs early? "What's going on?!" everyone seems to be wondering.

Mom and Dad are on Eagle Time, which makes their behavior a little harder to pin down by our own clock! Still, their past behavior provides some clues. We should see work on the nest beginning in October and accelerating through the end of the year. In January, the eagles should move deeper into courtship. In addition to nest-building, we should see pair perching, vocalizations, bill stroking and pecking, and some footing or body stroking. Towards mid-to-late January, the eagles should begin bringing soft nesting material such as grasses, corn husks, and corn stalks in to line the nest bowl. Dad will begin sharing food (sometimes reluctantly), and physical contact will accelerate with even more touching, footing, and beak kissing. Mating will most likely begin in late January or early February, followed by egg-laying in late February or early March,

The US Fish and Wildlife Service's Bald Eagle Management Plan has a chronology for nesting activities in various parts of the United States.

Northern US. Includes Decorah, Fort St. Vrain, MN Bound

Southeastern US. Includes Florida Eagle cams, Berry College

As the chart clearly shows, the bald eagles in the Southeastern US are running on SEET (Southeastern Eagle Time) when compared to bald eagles in the northern US. However, eagles in both regions are right on time for their behaviors. In Iowa, Colorado, and along the Mississippi river in Eagle Valley, eagles are beginning to visit and work on nests.
If you can't keep up with the nests live, you are welcome to visit our Facebook page and/or forum.

The US Fish and Wildlife Service website contains some very good information on BE nationwide. Go to http://www.fws.gov/midwest/eagle/conservation/baea_nhstry_snstvty.html for a live web site or http://www.fws.gov/midwest/eagle/pdf/NationalBaldEagleManagementGuidelines.pdf for a .pdf of the management guidelines.