Golden Eagle Survey

 This weekend I participated in the 9th Annual Golden Eagle Survey through the National Eagle Center.Each January, for the past nine years, volunteers have braved the cold to go out and count golden eagles in south eastern Minnesota, south western Wisconsin, and northern Iowa. This was my fifth year on the survey and I was joined by my crew mates from The Raptor Center Jim, who was also on the survey with me last year, and Less. We had the same route in south western Wisconsin as we did last year. This route has numerous territories in it and this year we surpassed last years numbers by 1 by spotting 6 eagles.

For many years spotting a golden eagle in this area was a rare occurrence. It was well known that 100 to 200 golden eagles were typically counted migrating over Hawk Ridge each year but most people believed that they migrated out of the area. Perhaps out east to Pennsylvania where a group of golden eagles was known to winter. Then Scott, the Education Director at the National Eagle Center began to spot them in the hilly areas just outside of the Mississippi River Valley. After a few years he organized the first survey. Since then the survey has grown. Last year there was over 154 volunteers and we spotted 130 golden eagles. They have also had the opportunity to put radio trackers on several eagles so that we can learn more about these eagles. One of the big questions is where do they nest, since they do not breed here in Minnesota. Preliminary info suggests that they either breed around the Arctic Circle north of Churchill, Canada or out east in Quebec, Canada. However we need a lot more info before we can hope to understand these majestic eagles and I am continuing to do my part by participating in the annual survey.

This weekend I headed south down the Mississippi River to the National Eagle Center in Wabasha, MN. The center was celebrating the five year anniversary of their beautiful facility located on the banks of the river. They began back in 1989 as a group of volunteers, called EagleWatch Inc, that pointed out eagles to visitors from a outdoor observation deck on the river. In 2000 they moved to a storefront in Wabasha and took in two educational eagles Harriet and Angel (below).

In 2003 Columbia an immature female was added to the line up. In September of 2007 the National Eagle Center moved to the new 15,000 foot facility. A year later Donald, the center's Golden Eagle, came to join them from California. The final educational ambassador was tiny Was'aka, a six pound male that came from Florida. All of these birds came from rehabilitation facilities and can not be released back into the wild. To celebrate this weekend they also had Native American hoop dancing, chainsaw art demonstrations, a bird show from a Tennessee bird organization, as well as their normal educational programs and displays. The weather was beautiful and it looks like everyone was having a great time. The only thing missing was the cake, but as a diabetic I did not really miss watching everyone else pig out on sugar.  

Winter Birding - Golden Eagle Survey

With all of the summer pics that I have been posting you might think that I am hibernating over the winter. Spending all winter sleeping in a nice warm place sounds good, at least for a few minutes, but its not my style. So I have been out taking pics and participating in some fun events.

In January I participated in the Annual Golden Eagle Survey, which is coordinated through the National Eagle Center in Wabasha, MN. Each year we count the golden eagles that winter in southeastern Minnesota and western Wisconsin. This is my third year doing the survey so I contemplated asking for my own route but I was not sure that my car could handle the back roads and hills in the area, especially if the weather was not cooperative.

So I headed down to White Water State Park to join the group that was counting down there. When I arrived I found that there were about 20 cars, that were broken into two groups, that were surveying the park area. Since I thought that there were more then enough people to cover the park, in 2009 we had 4 or 5 cars, I decided to work some of the back roads between the park and Wabasha on my own, the weather was very cooperative this year.

While traveling the back roads I found a dozen bald eagles, one of which was an immature, and three red-tailed hawks but unfortunately no golden eagles. So I stopped back at the Eagle Center so I could get a shot of Don, the education golden eagle at the center. This year, the 6th year of the count, there were over 130 volunteers and 93 golden eagles were counted. Most of the eagles were in Buffalo County in Wisconsin where 25 volunteers covered 15 routes and counted 60 golden eagles. Next year I think that I will have to see if I can get a route in Buffalo County.

National Eagle Center

On Saturday I took a trip down the Mississippi River to the National Eagle Center in Wabasha, MN to attend a workshop on golden eagle identification. This is a prelude to the golden eagle survey that is held in south east Minnesota and Western Wisconsin each January.

The survey is sponsored by the National Eagle Center. The purpose of the workshop is to help those people interested in participating in the survey distinguish between golden eagles and immature bald eagles, both of which can be found in the same approximate area. I have participated in the survey the past two years. I have also taken the workshop in the past so I knew most of the info but a refresher never hurts and Scott Mehus, who runs the survey and the workshop, always ends the program by taking people out to a location where he knows golden eagles can be found

The Eagle C enter is a great facility located on the banks of the Mississippi River at the northern end of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge. Since the Upper Mississippi River NWFR hosts the largest number of wintering bald eagles in the continental US, the National Eagle Center is an a perfect location. With a number of decks, like this one outside on the river, lots of windows, marked with decals to prevent birds from flying into them, and plenty of scopes and binoculars to use it is tough not to see an bald eagle here. If you happen to visit at a slow time when there are no eagles around outside you can always check out one of the four resident bald eagles at the center. The bald eagles include Angel, pictured above, Harriot, Columbia, and the newest arrival Was'aka an three year old immature bird from Florida. On my way down to the eagle center I spotted about 35 eagles on the river, much of which is now frozen unlike in these pictures which I took at the end of October.

Over the past few years the center has been branching out to look into the golden eagle population that spends winter in southeast Minnesota and western Wisconsin. After watching the golden eagles in the winter for several years Scott, who works at the center, put together a survey in 2005 to try and get an idea of the number of golden eagles wintering in the area. In 2005 25 people participated in the survey and they counted 21 golden eagles. Over the past five years the number of participants in the survey has increased, 2009 was the largest group with 100 people, which has helped to find an increasing number of eagles each year, 88 in 2009.

In 2008 the National Eagle Center went a step further and procured a golden eagle education bird from the California Raptor Center. This allowed visitors to the center to see a golden eagle up close. In 2009 a golden eagle inadvertently caught in a coyote trap in western Wisconsin became the first bird in a joint research project between the center and Audubon Society of Minnesota, with support from the Minnesota and Wisconsin DNR and a couple other groups. Golden eagle 42, nick named Whitey, was fitted with a satellite tracking pack when he was released, he was rehabilitated at The Raptor Center. The project hopes to discover where these golden eagles spend their summer as well as general research on behavior and migration. Whitey traveled from Wisconsin up into Canada and spent his summer up at the arctic circle north of Churchill. Currently Whitey has returned to western Wisconsin to spend the winter. The project hopes to tag a couple more eagles this winter if possible so that they can learn more about these magnificent winter visitors.

For more information about the Golden Eagle Project check out this website at Audubon Minnesota.

My World: the National Eagle Center

For this weeks edition of My World I would like to introduce you to the National Eagle Center in Wabasha, MN.

Wabasha,MN is a small community located along the Mississippi River about an hours drive south of the Twin Cities. In 1989 Mary Rivers, a member of a Wabasha Chamber of Commerce Committee looking to revitalize the economy of the small town and preserve it's non-industrial riverfront, founded a group called Eagle Watch, Inc.

Rivers had been fascinated with eagles and believed that the rebounding winter population of eagles in the area around Wabasha could be a great tourist attraction for the city.

So Eagle Watch, Inc sent a group of volunteers up to The Raptor Center for training so that they could staff a unused boat landing that the city donated to be used as an eagle observation deck. The observation deck opened in 1990 and brought over 1000 visitors to the town.

Eagle Watch, Inc continued to bring more tourists to Wabasha each year and with their continuing success they were able to expand their operations. In 1996 a visitor's center was opened in an empty store front near the observation deck. In 1999 Congress designated the facility the National Eagle Center and in 2007 the National Eagle Center opened its brand new facility, which you see pictured here.

The new building is located directly on the riverfront. It's many windows, all of which have clings on to break up any reflective pattern which may cause a bird to fly into it, over look the river where you can often see wild eagles flying. Wabasha is located just south of where the Chippewa River, coming out of Wisconsin, empties into the Mississippi. Since the Chippewa is a swift moving river and the Mississippi is slow at this point, since it is just coming out of Lake Peppin, the water is churned and does not typically freeze during the winter. This open water brings many eagles into the area during the winter time. Wabasha is also the northern border of the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge.

Inside the facility there are display areas, classrooms, a gift shop and the housing area for the centers resident eagles. There is also a 25' high as well as a river level observation deck with scopes and binos for visitors to use.

The center is currently home for 3 resident bald eagles. At 26 years Harriet, pictured above, is the oldest of the three. Harriet is the big star of the center. She has appeared before politicians and celebrities, has been on TV with Stephan Colbert and Jeff Corwin, and appears on the Minnesota Veteran's License Plate.

Columbia is the newest of the bald eagles, although it looks from their website that they are in the process of getting a new bald eagle. She came to the center in 2003, shortly after the Columbia Shuttle tragedy, and was named in memory of the shuttles crew.

Angel is my favorite of the three bald eagles. She always has attitude and is not afraid to show her personality. When I took this pic Angel had spotted a wild eagle flying across the river and had to let him know who was the boss.

The newest edition to the National Eagle Center family is a golden eagle named Don. Don's addition has been significant because the center has been very involved in studying the population of migrating golden eagles that spends the winter in the area. Over the past few years the center has organized an annual survey to count the golden eagles wintering in the lower Mississippi Valley in Minnesota as well as Wisconsin and northern Iowa. Each year as more volunteers participate in the survey more golden eagles are spotted.

A Visit to the National Eagle Center

While on my way down to Cochrane, WI for the golden eagle field trip I stopped off at the National Eagle Center in Wabasha, MN. The last time that I had been at the NEC they were still working with the new golden eagle so he was not yet available for view by the public. That was about a month ago, now Don is out with the 3 resident bald eagles acting as an ambassabor for his species.
All of the birds at the center are birds that were injured and rehabilitated but could not be returned to the wild. Now they help the center to educate people on eagles and on environmental issues that might affect these marvelous birds.
Columbia, above, is the youngest of the bald eagles at the center. She came to the center shortly after the Columbia shuttle disaster and got her name in honor of the Columbia crew.
Harriet has been with the center the longest. She is tried and true and very used to being around people. She has done programs all around the country, has appeared on the Colbert Report, and modeled for a special Minnesota Veteran's license plate.
On this Sunday one of the center volunteers had Angel on a glove out in the lobby. I think of Angel as the wild child of the bunch. She always appears to me to have a little more attitude and is often more vocal then Harriet or Columbia.
While I was there she spotted several wild bald eagles flying out over the river in front of the center and she was very insistent about letting them, as well as all of us, know that she wanted to go out and play. If you ever are around Wabasha, MN I definitely recommend a visit to the National Eagle Center.

In Search Golden Eagles at 20 Below

What do you do when it gets to 20 below zero and 40 below wind-chill? You go out looking for golden eagles of course. This Sunday Scott Mehus, from the National Eagle Center, lead a field trip through the back roads of southwest Wisconsin in search of Golden Eagles. Scott organizes the annual golden eagle survey that I participated in last month. The survey, which was held on January 17th, included 67 observers that covered 26 routes, 16 in Wisconsin, 9 in Minnesota and 1 in Iowa. The results of the survey were, 37 golden eagles spotted on the count day, 31 in WI and 6 in MN. An additional 23 birds were spotted during the count week on routes not covered during the count day, 17 in WI and 6 in MN. During the count observers also spotted 390 bald eagles, 112 red-tailed hawks, 18 rough-legged hawks, 1 red-shouldered hawk, and several American kestrel and sharp-shinned hawks.

The group that I was in covered an area just west of Wabasha, MN. We spotted about 10 bald eagles and a red-tailed hawk but no golden eagles. Since some of the observers were like me and did not get to see any golden eagles Scott put together this field trip to give us another chance to catch a glimpse of these marvelous birds before they head north. Scott chose Sunday the 10th as the date for the field trip. That Sunday the skies were clear and blue but it was very cold, later that night International Falls Minnesota hit a record of 40 degrees below zero. People who wanted to participate in the field trip were to meet down in Cochrane, WI at 1:30PM so I decided to start off early in the morning and do some birding on my way down. I arrived in Cochrane a bit early so I ate some lunch while Scott and the rest of the participants arrived. There were 8 of us who were crazy enough to brave the cold and join Scott on this adventure and we were not disappointed. Scott found us a pair of golden eagles right away. Unfortunately they were perched close to the trunk of a tree which was not really great for taking pics. Scott explained that golden eagles do not typically perch out in the open like bald eagles do which is why most people often miss them. Later on we did find one that was perched more in the open; he was pretty far away, at least a mile, so I was not able to get a lot of detail in the shot.
I did stop at the National Eagle Center on my way up so that I could get a good close up shot of a golden eagle. This is Don and he is the newest educational bird at the National Eagle Center. I will post more pictures from the National Eagle Center later.
We also did get a look at a golden eagle in flight. Golden eagles usually fly with more of a dihedral, V shaped, wing pattern then bald eagles do. This helps when trying to distinguish a golden eagle in flight from an immature bald eagle.
Another thing to look for to help distinguish a golden eagle in flight is the size of the head and neck in comparison to the size of the tail. You can see in the shot above that the head and neck appear to be much smaller then the tail on a golden eagle.
The immature bald eagle, like this one that flew over with 2 others while we were out looking for goldies, flies with its wings straight out at its sides and its head, with its large beak appears to be about the same size as the tail.

Soon these birds will leave this area and migrate back north. Where their breeding grounds are we are not sure though it is suspected that they are part of the Ontario or Quebec golden eagle population. Through the National Eagle Center and Scott's efforts people are becoming more aware of this golden eagle population that we have wintering in our area. Scott spoke briefly, at one point, about how he hoped to someday be able to tag a couple of the eagles with GPS so that we could track where their summer range is. I think that would be a worthwhile project and I would love to be involved with it. For now I plan to continue to participate in future golden eagle surveys, even on dreadfully cold days.

National Eagle Center Grand Opening

On Saturday Michelle and I went down to Wabasha, MN for the grand opening of the National Eagle Center. There was a big celebration planned with events through out the city. Unfortunately the weather was not very cooperative. When we left home it was grey and cloudy but as we went south the rain began to pick up. When we arrived at Wabasha it was raining steadily. The main street was blocked off for a stage and the eco tent, so we had to park a couple blocks from the center and walk through the rain. As we walked through the rain we passed the stage where a poor musician played under an overhang to a bunch of empty rain soaked chairs. The center itself was packed. We arrived around noon so there were still a lot of sponsors and local politicians there for the dedication ceremony. Since we were already members we did not need to stop and buy tickets so we got our arm bands and went inside out of the rain. I was soaked so we went to the gift shop and bought a dry shirt and a hat for me to wear. Then we got in line for the tour.

The tour was broken down into three parts. The first part was in the eagle area. Angel and Columbia were in the eagle area as well as a couple of volunteers who answered questions about eagles.

Angel

The second part of the tour was in the preparation area. A volunteer talked about food preparation, medical care, and how the eagles are transported. The final portion of the tour was in one of the class rooms. In here they had volunteers answering questions, media from the normal daily lectures and Harriet to pose for pictures.

Harriet is the oldest of there educational birds, she is 26 years old. Harriet is also the calmest of the educational birds which is why she is the one that does most of the important events.Harriet has appeared at VA hospitals, has here face on a special license plate, has appeared on the Steven Colbert Report and has been given her military wings.Harriet is the shorter one in the picture. The geeky guy next to her is me. Doesn't the new shirt look nice? It's too bad that Michelle has already told me that it belongs to her. Well at least I get to keep the hat. After we left the center we decided to check out the eco tent. It was filled with exhibits from The International Wolf Center, the Upper Mississippi River Wildlife and Fish Refuge, Michael Pappas with lots of baby turtles, The Raptor Center, and others. The Raptor Center brought a bald eagle and a peregrine falcon to the event.

National Eagle Center

On my trip home from the Quad Cities on the sixteenth I made another stop in at the National Eagle Center. On this visit I signed Michelle and myself up as Feather of Flight members for the year. I also sat in on a program that was going on when I arrived. The program was informative and included some information that I did not know. They ended the program by bringing in Columbia, one of there educational eagles to visit and share lunch with us all.

Most of the time the eagles are kept on a special diet but for helping in the program they are given a rat for a treat. Eagles eat their entire prey, including bones, fur, skin and internal organs. Unlike owls, who swallow their prey and then discard bones and fur by throwing up pellets, the eagles stomach can digest the entire rat.

Columbia is the youngest of the three educational eagles at around six years old. She was adopted by the center in 1993 and named in memory of the Columbia Space Shuttle and her crew.

I will have to keep these picture close at hand for the next time I need to make a patriotic post. Columbia did a wonderful job. After the program I went in to see the eagles and was lucky enough to find Marybeth Garrigan, the center's program director, holding Angel, another of the center's educational birds, and answering visitors questions.Angel is about 9 years old and was found in the Grantsburg, WI area. For those new to the website or not familiar with the Minnesota and Wisconsin area Grantburg is the gateway to Crex meadows, which is where I rescued an injured eagle earlier this year.Angel had a broken wing that healed improperly and had to be re-broken. Even though the bone eventually healed properly the muscles in that wing did not. So angel has some flight ability but can not sustain it so she can not be released back to the wild.

Also it was interesting to see that they had added the mural to the back wall of the eagles room in between Thursday the 13th and Sunday the 16th. Check out the pictures from the 16th.

September 29th and 30th is the grand opening for the new building. The whole city of Wabasha is joining in on the celebration with a couple stages set up for musicians and story tellers, paddle boat cruises on the river, DNR flatboat tours of the Mississippi River Channel, educational programs and tours from the National Eagle Center, Raptor Center and others and a US Postal Service commemorative stamp cancellation. For more information on the grand opening check out their website http://www.nationaleaglecenter.org/GOmain.htm