Story and Photographs By Joan Herrmann
Whereiwander… today it is in search of a favorite, which may be in or around the area of the Hinckley Dam and Reservoir. What I am hoping to find is one or more of the birds, which is our National Emblem, the Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucophalus). It is such a joy to be able to find and photograph this bird, especially since it has only been the last two decades that they have been slowly returning to our area and have been quite successful at reproducing nestlings. Eagles do not migrate and may be found sitting in tall trees over open water to hunt for their favorite food which is fish. Just like all raptors, eagles are strictly carnivores (meat eaters). They will hunt and eat small mammals and birds in addition to fish. They are particularly fond of waterfowl, mainly ducks of all species. Occasionally, when they experience frigid weather that freezes the deepest water, they must depend on other food sources. One of these sources might be road kill or a large mammal that may have died of starvation.
As a raptor (meat eater) eagles have another common trait which is the female is always much larger than the male. However, unless they are in close proximity, it may be difficult to determine whether you are viewing a male or a female. Both the mature female and male have dark brown torso feathers in addition to a white head, neck and tail feathers. Each has a yellow bill and cere (fleshy area between the bill and the face). The cere has oval-shaped openings, which are called nares. The nares are the entrance to the respiratory system. Air passes through their lungs twice within each breathing cycle. The adult eagles have light yellow eyes. An immature eagle doesn’t have these mature characteristics until it is five years old. Within four months of hatching from its egg, and just before it fledges (becomes ready to leave the nest), an eaglet grows and changes appearance three times. The hatchlings emerge with pale gray down, but within a few weeks, they molt into thicker, darker gray down. When they have grown in height and weight, they will be ready to leave their nest. Their molted brown and white feathers will have replaced the shade of gray down. The males are the first to leave the nest; they will fledge within nine to twelve weeks of age, while the larger females will fledge at ten to twelve plus weeks after hatching. The immature eagle’s bill, cere and eyes are brown and will change to yellow when they reach maturity…