Journey North Bald Eagle Spring 2004

Bald Eagle

Bald Eagle Migration Update: March 24, 2004

Today's Report Includes:

Migration Heating Up
Field Notes from Peter Nye: Challenge Question #16
Eagleye Continues...
More Migration Investigations: Challenge Question #17
Shhhhhhh – Eagles are Nesting!
Fly-Over Dangers
Intensive Checklist: Monitoring at the Nesting Sites
Ask the Eagle Expert - Questions Answered
On Wings of an Eagle: Discussing CQ #13
Interpreting Satellite Data: Discussing CQ #14
Adaptations: The Body: Discussion of CQ #15
Eagle Adaptations: Review What You Learned

Migration Heating Up

They’re starting to move out! A00 is really moving this week; he’s not wasting any time getting home. But keep a close eye on A20. Last year he took off about this time. Will he follow the same pattern this year? You might wonder where E50 is, too. Captured over 3 years ago in March, his transmitter has either started on its 10-day cycle, or has simply shut off. We’ll pass on information as we learn more.

Field Notes from Peter Nye
Hello Again Eagle Trackers: In looking over this week's data, I guess I'd have to say the excitement is with our golden eagle A00, who is really "flying!" This is the second spring season we have tracked him, and he appears to have wasted little time getting home. Look at the latest fix (21 March); how far away from home do you figure he is here? Also, you might find it interesting to compare how far he's gone now, in how many days, with his last years’ movement.

In looking over this week's data, I guess I'd have to say the excitement is with our golden eagle A00, who is really "flying," so to speak! This is the second spring season we have tracked him, and he appears to have wasted little time getting home. Look at the latest fix (21 March); how far away from home do you figure he is here? Also, you might find it interesting to compare how far he's gone now, in how many days, with his last years’ movement.

First let's look at the maps:


Spring 2003	Spring 2003

Now, compare what data we have for 2004 with data from 2003:

Golden Eagle A00

Spring 2003 Data
Spring 2004 Data

Challenge Question #16:
"By what date had Eagle A00 arrived in her nesting region last year? How many days did her migration take?"

(To respond to this question, please follow the instructions below.)

Eagleye Continues...
I also wonder what the weather is like way up there in northern Quebec right now. I have to imagine it is still darn cold and frozen! What do you suppose golden eagles up there would eat this time of year.....or any time of year! Wouldn't it be great fun to visit his nest site and see what it looks like up there, and see if he has young golden eaglets?

Moving on to our "new" bald eagle, V98, she appears to be "short-circuited" along our Raquette River up in the Adirondacks. Likely because there is open water and suitable habitat for her there for a while yet, while she waits for more spring-like conditions and more open water up north farther. We'll have to wait and see. It was darn cold here in Albany this morning, 11 degrees F on my thermometer. But, the forecast is for 50+ by the end of the week. Things could start opening up soon, and quickly.

Well, that's all from here. Hope you are all doing well with your studies and having fun keeping up with these birds. Till next week...

Eagleye

Endangered Species Unit
Wildlife Diversity Group
Endangered Species Unit
Delmar, NY

More Migration Investigations
Pete also mentioned that our other golden, A20, appears content down in Pennsylvania. Do you know when this bird took off last year? You might be surprised!

Check out last year’s data for Eagle A20. Then answer this:

Challenge Question #17:
“When did Golden eagle A20 take off in 2003? What is your prediction for this year? Will he leave about the same time?”

(To respond to this question, please follow the instructions below.)

Shhhhhhh – Eagles are Nesting!
“Eagles Nesting – Stay Away!” This is the kind of sign language used by eagle biologists to warn people to stay away from nesting eagles. During the month-long incubation and 3 months of rearing eaglets it is critical that the birds have few human disturbances.

As the leader of the Endangered Species Unit, Peter Nye keeps his eye on all the nesting birds. This week he writes, “We are getting reports of new nests now, and some with disturbance problems that need to be dealt with. One report that just came in today was of a man and his son walking right up to an eagle nest, where the female was incubating, and throwing stones to get her to fly so his son could "see it fly". Unbelievable! And, VERY much against the law! The local sheriff got him!

In NY last year human disturbance was suspected in the failure of 3 active Bald eagle nests. All 3 sites were very visible and close to human activity. Nye suspects that this human activity during the critical incubation period proved detrimental.

Fly-Over Dangers

Adirondac Nest Site

Visiting a nest and an unexpected surprise
(How to view Video Clips)

Pete stays very busy keeping track of the eagles and soon will be gearing up for nest-visits that start in about a month. Last summer we went along with Pete to film him climbing up to a nest, but we captured more on the video footage than we expected! Take a look at the film, but watch carefully.

After you watch, answer these:

Did you see the eagle flying above the nest in the early part of the film?
What flew over next?
How would you describe the noise level?
Do you think the eagle would be affected by the sound or the presence of the jet?
Do you think there are laws protecting eagles against this kind of disturbance?
If you witnessed any kind of human disturbance of an active eagle’s nest how would you go about reporting it?

Intensive Checklist: Monitoring at the Nesting Sites

As we know, a large part of Pete Nye’s job involves visits to all the active Bald eagle nests in NY each summer. These visits are extremely important for eagle research.

Here is a checklist of the things reported from each nest:

inspect the integrity of nests
identify and collect prey items
collect blood samples from select locations
collect addled eggs (spoiled or rotten)
obtain a GPS location
determine site conditions and management needs
predator-proof the nest tree
interact with landowners and garner their support
inspect any eaglets for disease, parasites or deformities
band the young

Ask the Eagle Expert - Questions Answered

Since 1995, experts have contributed answers to students' questions about each Journey North species.

This year we had some great questions submitted to our Eagle Expert, Peter Nye.

Link to read this year's questions and their answers

On Wings of an Eagle: Discussing CQ #13
How far did Golden eagle V98 fly? Between March 9th at 10:15 EST, and March 12th at 17:33 EST she traveled 192 miles (309 kilometers). What was her flight speed?

We calculated that 79 hours and 18 minutes passed between signals. Rounded to the nearest hour is 79 hours. 192 miles divided by 79 hours = 2.43 mph. Now calculating in kilometers per hour, we find that 309 km divided by 79 hours = 3.91 kph.

Thanks for sharing your work, Phillip and Luke!

Interpreting Satellite Data: Discussing CQ #14
"How might an eagle's behavior be different than our migration map shows? That is, what might an eagle be doing during the time the satellite is NOT sending us data? Give an example."

The satellite only sends a snapshot representing a moment in time, but during the time in between the data reports lots of things are happening. Luke, a 6th grade home-schooler wrote to suggest “…an eagle might be hunting, eating, sleeping, moving, or finding a mate.”

Luke directed us to a perfect example of this when Bald Eagle #V98 stopped on her migration trail to feed on a deer carcass being monitored by Peter Nye and Kathy Michell. We know what happened then! #V98 was captured and tagged.

Adaptations: The Body: Discussion of CQ #15

Challenge Question #15:
“In what ways is the eagle built for survival?”
Jack, Andrew, and Mary from Ferrisburgh, NJ went online to find more about how an eagle’s body is built for survival. Here is what they wrote, “The eagle's body is strong. Their muscles are well developed for flying. The body also has hollow bones, so the eagle is not as heavy and can fly faster. The bones have braces inside of them so they are still strong. They can get in the air quickly and fly easily because their skeleton doesn't weigh so much."

They shared resources with us, too! Check out their research site:

The Bald Eagle’s Quest for Flight

Peter Nye adds, “Birds, including eagles, also have hollow (yet very strong) bones to decrease total body weight and help in flight. Unlike many other birds, though, eagles are fairly heavy, bulky birds. Because of this, they need a lot of room and a lot of energy to take off, not unlike an airplane. They are not birds designed for quick flight and maneuvers. Rather, they really shine as soaring birds, using their large wings, once airborne, taking advantage of air currents and natural thermals, to float almost effortlessly at great heights and over long distances.”

Eagle Adaptations: Review What You Learned

Demonstrate what you learned about adaptation facts

This spring we looked closely at eagles, from head to toe. Each week, we posed a Challenge Question related to the next week's featured adaptation. Today we offer you an eagle adaptation review.

Adaptations that Help Eagles Survive

How can you use this information? I bet you can be creative! Why not use the facts to make a game, or create a poster, or a card game? Teach someone what you have learned. Why not add the most interesting facts to your eagle portfolio?

How to Respond to Today's Challenge Questions:

IMPORTANT: Answer only ONE question in each e-mail message.

1. Address an e-mail message to: jn-challenge-eagle@learner.org
2. In the Subject Line of your message write: Challenge Question #16 (or #17).
3. In the body of EACH message, answer ONE of the questions above.

The Next Bald Eagle Migration Update Will Be Posted on March 31, 2004.