Decorah bald eaglets branching out, soon to fledge

Nearly four months after the bald eagle mother laid her three eggs, and about 10 weeks after those eggs were hatched, the world-famous eaglets of Decorah, Iowa, are behaving as though it's time for them to leave their 80-foot-high nest and begin life on their own terms.

Based on their brief disappearances Thursday, from the lens of an immensely popular web-cam, two of the three eaglets have begun taking short flights to and from nearby branches.

 Bob Anderson of the Raptor Resource Project has predicted that the eaglets will begin to fledge as early as the last week in June. "Branching" often precedes fledging, or first flights. The RRP on Thursday explained the branching phenomenon and how the RRP will respond with its monitoring cameras on its Facebook page:

"Branching means going from the nest to branches, then back to the nest, which we will try to capture on the PTZ camera as much as possible. Once they take their maiden flights, they will stay lower to the ground for 3 days or up to a week, on a fence, bridge, etc., which means they will totally be out of camera view then.

"We will try to get photos uploaded here during that time. After that, they usually make it back to the nest off and on, and the cameras will still be on during all this. The cameras will most likely be turned off about July 15th. Mom and Dad will still help feed them most likely through August, whether they are on the ground, perched elsewhere, or if they come back and forth to the nest."

The RRP also hopes to to band the juvenile birds and place a transmitter on one of them.

"The juvies will be captured on the ground a couple of weeks after they fledge," reads a statement on the Ustream website. "The small band with its identifying color and number goes around one of the ankles and does not bother or endanger the bird. The transmitter is mounted loosely and comfortably like a tiny backpack, and it does not interfere with flight or with head or neck movement.

"The process takes just a few minutes and does not frighten or harm the birds. It is possible to take measurements of the juvies as they are banded to determine their sex. Banding eventually gives researchers information on how far the bird has flown from its birth nest once it has died or is found injured; the band might also be spotted during feeding, nesting, or migrating and thus can be useful in tracking the eagle's movements."

At one point Thursday, at about 2 p.m. local time, only one eaglet was visible. That made what for months had been a very crowded nest appear strikingly lonely.

Comments

[Fran Gehl, 355 WestFirst St. Corning, NY 14830]

I want to thank all of you who are responsible for this web sight. I'm 79 years young and have watched & fed the birds in my yard for over fifty years. The opportunity you gave me to watch from bird to flight is priceless.
Thank you very much,
Fran Gehl