Our eagle's location on February 24th has been added to the migration data table below. Have you figured out which town she is near and where she might be fishing? Last week, Challenge Question #16 asked those questions. While you were working away, we went to Peter Nye for the answer. Here's what he had to say:
"The nearest village is Forestburgh, New York and #32 (along with other eagles in the area) are fishing in the Mongaup and Delaware Rivers."
It's not easy to plot satellite locations on a map, and students did an amazing job finding her! Mrs. Allen's students in Pueblo, Colorado were off by just 45 miles. From Alaska, Mrs. Click's students came within 20 miles. Even closer were students in Edgecomb, Maine who came within 31 miles. Narrowing the margin, Nebraska students came within 16 miles, followed by a Glenwood Springs, Colorado student whose estimate was off by just 14 miles.
Finally, congratulations to Mrs. Swan's 5th and 6th period students who came within 8 miles of identifying her exact location! You'll find their comments later in this report.
Ground Truthing
Peter Nye's on-the-ground report of the eagle's location provides an opportunity for us to do something called "ground truthing". That is, by comparing the eagle's known location to the satellite's reported location we can tell how accurate the technology we are using actually is. Scientists who use satellite information always do this. For example, weather reports from observers on the ground can be compared against weather information collected by satellites. When tracking eagles, ground truthing has shown that satellite locations regularly come within 1 km of actual locations. Nevertheless, whenever scientists use the tools of technology, they must always question the results and consider things that could affect its accuracy.
Migration Data Table
Date Latitude 1/Longitude 1 OR Latitude 2/Longitude 2
02/24/96 41.588 N, 74.790 W OR 40.796 N, 78.832 W
02/22/96 41.607 N, 74.827 W OR 34.575 N, 40.595 W
02/19/96 41.531 N, 74.858 W OR 40.037 N, 82.693 W
How Does Satellite Tracking Work?
We received this message last week from students in our eagle's winter-time home state of New York:
"Our classes at Hudson Falls Junior High in upstate New York are excited about tracking the eagle in our "back yard". However, we are puzzled over the satellite data. Peter Nye said that the satellite always gives two sets of data. Does anyone know why this happens?" Hudson Fall Middle School, hfmiddle@globalone.net
This is such a good question that we've decided to offer these students a chance to interview an expert in this field! Watch for information about how satellite tracking works in a future report.
Here are students answers to Challenge Question #16:
From ALASKA:
We think that she is near the town of Liberty, New York and that she is fishing in Neversak Reservoir Holly and Ashley, Mrs. Click's Fifth Grade, Badger Road Elementary North Pole, Alaska 64N 148 W bgrfcgc@northstar.k12.ak.us
From COLORADO:
We think our eagle is fishing in the Hudson River, south of West Point, NY. Mrs. Allen's 4th Graders South Park Elementary, Pueblo, Colorado garyt@csn.net
From NEW YORK:
Mrs. Swan's 7th grade science students in Hudson Falls, NY have been studying a large map of New York to answer this question. Here are their answers:
* 5th period: town: either Sackett's Lake or Monticello water: Toronto Reservoir, Swinging Ridge Reservoir, or the Delaware River
* 6th period: town: Monticello water: Sackett's Lake or Swinging Ridge Reservoir
7th period: town: Narrowsburgwat er: Delaware River hfmiddle@globalone.net
From MAINE:
We are a fifth grade class at Edgecomb Eddy School in Edgecomb, Maine. We think the eagle is feeding at Lake Wallenpaupack about 25 miles east of Scranton, PA. paton@maine.com
From NEBRASKA:
We are a 6 grade class at McPhee Elementary School in Lincoln, Nebraska. We tried to estimate as best as possible where the bald eagle was. We think it was near Narrowsburg, New York and she must have been fishing in the Delaware River. Are we close? someone@lps.esu18.k12.ne.us
From COLORADO:
The eagle was near Port Jervis, Pennsylvania and she was fishing in the Delaware River. Jan Blomquist Magical Child Learning Center Glenwood Springs, Colorado (janblom@infosphere.com)
The Next Bald Eagle Migration Update Will be Posted on March 11, 1996
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