Saturday is for Eagle Watching

On a recent Saturday, I visited three active nests of American Bald Eagles in South Florida to observe the eaglets and the pair of parents and to photograph some of the activity. The nest in Marco Island held the youngest eaglets, with two in the nest who were still weeks away from their first flight. As the eaglets moved around and stood up on the edge of the nest to take care of business — you know, to keep the nest clean — we got a good look.

Marco Island bald eaglet stands on edge of the sturdy nest and peers overboard. March 23, 2019.

Using my Tamron 150-600mm lens on my Nikon D800 mounted on a Really Right Stuff tripod, I got these close up photos, using ISO 200 around 10 am.

It will take five years for these brown eaglets to look like their parents with white feathers on the head and tail.

Scanning to the right and left, this bald eagle parent is on guard, to protect the eaglets in the nest.

Perhaps a dozen spectators with a variety of cameras, long lenses, tripods, binoculars and camera phones gathered on the sidewalk at a respectful distance (behind a rope as a reminder). One told the story of last year’s drama: The father eagle was electrocuted in a power line while chasing off prey. Some time later, a new male eagle arrived on the scene, and finding eaglets in the nest, he threw them out. The young eaglets, unable to fly, plunged to their deaths. This year, the family is doing well.

All Eyes on the Eagle’s Nest

I had no idea how LARGE an eaglet is when it is ready to take flight for the first time, until I visited the Eagle’s Nest near my home in Naples. The “babies” don’t have a white (bald) head or white tail feathers yet, but they are quite large.

This eaglet in Naples FL made its first flight to a nearby pine tree branch, and he surveyed the new view while deciding on his next move.

Eagle admirers have been watching four nests in the region from Venice, FL to Bonita Beach, Naples and Marco Island. I have planned an outing to the Marco Island Nature Preserve and Bird Sanctuary tomorrow to observe those eaglets.