Bald Eagle Migration Update: February 1, 2006

Today's Report Includes:

• Tracking Bald Eagles with Eagleye Nye
• Field Notes from Peter Nye
• Meet the Eagles of 2006
• Mysteries Revealed - Fall 2005 Migration Map Ready
• Try This! Map Lesson
• Contest Now Open: Name the Eagles - Challenge Question #1
• Welcome and Helpful Hints

Peter Nye with E63

Eagle biologists Pete Nye(r) and Scott VanArsdale(l) with U21.

We’re proud to welcome the return of "Eagle Eye" Nye who's back for the 12th season! His agency, the New York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation, has been studying eagles in New York for about 30 years (oddly enough, the same amount of time Nye has been working there!). Nye is one of the top eagle biologists in North America, and we're grateful for the chance to look over his shoulder each year as he conducts his important work.

Take a minute to meet Eagle Eye Nye and to learn about his research.

• Peter Nye’s 2006 Research Goals
  
  

Hello Journey North!

Things have been hopping here in New York with eagles while you were gone, throughout the year, as usual. We’ve had another record year again here, eagle-wise, with 441 eagles tallied during our January 2005 mid-winter bald eagle survey (part of the National survey effort conducted at this time) as well as a record breeding season, with 92 nesting pairs who fledged 112 young in 2005. Now, we are deeply involved in our winter eagle work, capturing and tracking New York wintering eagles.

Let me start with some background on what we are up to currently and which eagles we (you) are tracking.

Old Trackers and New Birds
Our wintering eagle V98 has already had two complete spring and fall migrations you can use to compare and look for patterns. Ditto with P04 as he starts to move this coming spring, compared with what he did in 2005. Eagle U21 is brand new, and our first satellite-tagged of this season. As far as I can tell, she is a young adult, so it will be interesting to see what she does.

Bear in mind my usual caution as we proceed this winter; the eagles we capture could either be winter visitors who will indeed migrate, or they might be resident eagles that will stay in the area come spring and breed here; we have no way of telling. Furthermore, as my Research Goals page states, we are now launched on a study of Delaware River eagles, and our focus is mostly on what essential habitats these eagles are using along the Delaware, winter or summer, so we actually want both breeders and wintering birds. Scott, Kathy Michell, Sarah Shute, Steve Joule, Kathy Maloney and I will be out there attempting to capture additional eagles, so wish us luck. For now, enjoy this photo of Scott and me with U21.

So far, we here in New York have not had much of a winter. Early on in December we had some snow (and I got some snowboarding in) and cool temps, but leading into Christmas and now through most of January, we have had very mild temperatures and mostly totally open waterways.
Thanks for joining with us this year; hope you enjoy it!

Eagleye Nye
New York State Dept. Environmental Conservation
Delmar, NY

• Full Report: Field Notes from Eagleye (including picture)

• Meet the Bald Eagles of 2006

All in a day's work: Attaching satellite transmitters (PTT's) to immature Bald eagles (nestlings).

Fall 2005 Migration

Try This! Map Lesson
Print a copy of the handout, data and map.

• Looking at Fall Migration

1. Descriptive names
2. Clever names
3. Names that reflect something in the habitat or biology of the Bald eagle

Remember, we have 6 immature eagles and 3 adults.
You can learn more about eagles by following links from the Bald eagle's home page.

Enter your names in the contest:

Challenge Question #1:
“ I think one of the Bald eagles should be named __________. Here is why I think this is a name fit for a satellite-tracked eagle: ___________________.”

To respond to this question, please follow these instructions.

With each name submitted, be sure to include your name, school and grade level.
Mark your calendar: Contest Closes Feb. 21.

• Maps and Data
  Bookmark this page to find and use the tools needed to track eagles.
• Keep a Bald Eagle Journal
  Use printer-friendly journal pages for each update – and modify format to suit your needs.
• Build Your Own Eagle Glossary
  Build your vocabulary with terms used in our reports as we study eagles this season. Start this week with the following words: migration, eaglet, transmitter, fledge, hacking, watershed, and habitat.