TRACK A GOLDEN EAGLE ON ITS MIGRATION ROUTE

For maps of all eagle movements, see the archive.

Golden Eagle #39 was trapped at 13:00 local time on Thanksgiving Day (23 November 2006). He was a 3420 g (7 lb, 8.6 oz) male. This bird is at least four years old, but not quite a full adult. He was released at the Allegheny Front Hawkwatch and quickly moved south into West Virginia. For much of early winter 2006/2007 he spent his time in one area in southeastern WV. Track #39.

Golden Eagle #40 was trapped at 10:20 local time on 25 November 2006. He was a 3530 g (7 lb, 12.5 oz) male. This bird was younger than #39 and we are only sure that he is at least two years old. He was also released at the hawkwatch. This bird flew to a nearby tree and sat for a moment, watching us and getting his bearings, before heading north for a few minutes. Fifteen minutes later we watched him fly back by the hawkwatch, the telemetry unit on his back just as planned. He too moved south to WV but has also spent some time in Kentucky. Track #40.

Golden Eagle #41 was released on the morning of 22 March 2007 near Scherr, West Virginia. Inadvertently caught almost three months earlier in a leg hold trap, he was rehabilitated at the National Aviary. Read his story in more detail. When he was released wearing his telemetry backpack, he flew to a nearby tree where he got his bearings for a few minutes before flying out of sight. Track #41.

Bald eagle #59 was a young bird banded in the nest on 10 July 2007 on Lake Métis, in the Lower St. Lawrence region. This male was 3.6 kg (7.9 lbs) and, at eight weeks old, the only survivor of a brood of three. The nest is located 25m above ground in a huge white pine that towers over the neighbouring forest. Bald eagles have been reported to use this nest site since 1986. Track #59.

Golden eagle #60, a male weighing 3.9 kg (8.6 lbs), was captured on 3 October 2007, near Lac Matane, in the Matane Wildlife Reserve. Even though a pair of golden eagles has been nesting for many decades in the cliffs bordering this lake, the two known alternate nest sites were not used this year. But the pair was sighted several times since August in the company of a juvenile, indicating that another nest site was used in 2007. Track #60.

Bald eagle #61 was captured on 21 July 2007 on lac au Saumon in the Matapedia Valley. She was a 2-year-old subadult female of 4.4 kg (9.7 lbs). During the summer this bird moved along the Matapédia and Restigouche Rivers, both important salmon rivers. Afterwards it moved towards the St. John River in New Brunswick. Track #61.

Golden eagle #62 was captured on 7 August 2007 in the Gaspésie National Park. It was an adult male of 3.2 kg (7.1 lbs). He was captured on Mount Ernest-Laforce, at 792 m (2600 feet) of altitude, just over the cliff where the nest is located. Track #62.

Bald eagle #63 was captured on 30 May 2007 on Lake Métis, in the Lower St. Lawrence region. This adult male of 4.6 kg (10.1 lbs) is the father of bird #59. Its home range mainly encompasses lac Métis, a 35 km (22 miles) long lake. Track #63.

Bald eagle #64 was captured on 2 May 2007 on Lake Matapédia, in the Lower St. Lawrence region. It is an adult male. Various alternate nest sites were occupied on that lake since 1979 and the nest occupied in 2006 was blown down during the winter. Four days after the capture of this bird, it moved directly towards a point located 50 km (31 miles) east where a new nest was discovered in a white pine. This bald eagle made the trip back and forth almost daily between the nesting area and lac Matapédia up until nest abandonment around 9 July. Track #64.

Bald eagle #65 was captured relatively late in the season, on 1 August 2007, on lac au Saumon, in the Matapédia Valley. It was an adult male of 3.3 kg (7.3 lbs). We initially believed it was a member of the pair located regularly on this lake and which probably nested close by. But three adults were observed the day after and the movements made by this bird clearly indicate that it was a non-breeder. Among the birds captured in Québec, it is the first one to have initiated the southward migration. On 31 August 2007 it crossed through Pennsylvania into West Virginia. Track #65.

Bald eagle #66 was captured on 23 July 2007 near lac des Eaux Mortes, in the Lower St. Lawrence region. It was a female nestling of 5.0 kg (11.0 lbs). The nest in which this bird was accompanied by a sibling was blown down during a storm with high winds. Luckily, the young birds were old enough (7-8 weeks) to survive the fall. We discovered them on the ground in a small clearing where the adults continued to provide them food. Track #66.

Golden eagle #67 is a young female captured in the nest on 11 July 2007, in the Matane Wildlife Reserve. The nest was located on a cliff at about 20 m (66 feet) high. The chick was the only survivor of a brood of two. For almost two months, the transmitter placed on the bird’s back was covered by feathers, preventing light from attaining the solar panel and recharging of the battery. Data transmission only started in early September, after the bird was old enough to fly regularly and expose the transmitter. Track #67.

Golden eagle #68 was captured on 2 October 2007 in the Matane Wildlife Reserve, at about 2 km from the nest where juvenile #67 was captured. There is a high probability that this adult, weighing 4.0 kg (8.8 lbs), is the father of the eaglet. The relatively long rearing period of eagles enabled us to capture this adult so late in the season. Track #68.

Golden eagle #69 was an eaglet marked in the nest on 22 July 2007 in the Gaspésie National Park. It was then seven weeks old and weighed 3.05 kg (6,8 lbs). It is the son of eagle #62. The nest was located in a cliff at about 750 m (2460 feet) high. As with all juvenile birds tracked up until now, the first movements made by this bird were limited within a 1.5 km radius of the nest. Track #69.

Bald eagle #70 was captured on 17 May 2007 on lac aux Eaux Mortes, in the Lower St. Lawrence region. It was an adult male of 4.7 kg (10.4 lbs). It is the father of eagle #66. During the breeding season, this bird concentrated its activities on lac aux Eaux Mortes and on several small lakes and streams located south. Track #70.

*See a still (static) map of the tracks for all the golden eagles.

*See a still (static) map of the tracks for all the bald eagles.

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For questions, contact Dr. Todd Katzner, Director of Conservation and Field Research.