FreeLists / tn-bird / [TN-Bird] Hancock County Bald Eagle nest

["Wallace Coffey" <jwcoffey@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Several birders visited the Bald Eagles nest on the Clinch River in Hancock 
County, TN
this afternoon (6/17).  It was a fascinating and rewarding experience.
One adult sat all morning and much of the afternoon in a dead tree along the 
shore
just 100 feet from the roadway while traffic passed and people walked up and 
down the road and rode bicycles. 

The young stood on the nest across the river, flapping and stretching their 
adult-sized
wings and sometimes calling to the parents.

People fish along this stretch of river.  There are river cabins.  Rafters 
sometimes 
float past.

This is another example of eagles choosing to build their nest in areas 
frequented
by humans and close vehicle and pedestrian traffic.

Don Carrier, Christian Carrier, Suzanne Larkins, Carolyn Coffey and Wallace 
Coffey
met along the river to view the birds.  Don took many digital photos of both 
the 
perched eagle and the young on the nest.

A landowner along the river reported in late March that a hunter had found the 
eagle
nest.  It was first seen by a birder on 31 March.  Eagles have been frequenting 
a
several mile stretch of the river for several years.  The elevation here is 
about
1200 feet.  The river runs slow and mostly shallow with easy shoals.

Both adult eagles sat together on the nest early on.

This year they built their nest in the crown of a sycamore tree just under the 
highest
foliage where the nest could be shaded.  Nearby are three or four nest of last 
year's
rookery of Great Blue Herons.  There were eight heron nest in the tree last 
year.
None are known along the stretch at present.

No one seems to know if the eagles have nested elsewhere along the Clinch in
recent years.

Based on an estimated wingspan of seven feet,  the nest might be 7 feet in
diameter and maybe 4 feet deep.  Just looking up at the nest from across the 
river it does
not seem nearly that large but, considering the nest proportions when the young
spread their wings, it is larger than it seems. 

During the time we were there in early afternoon,  Common Ravens called 
frequently from the tall river cliffs just downstream.

The nest has survived a couple of hard storms and one that passed the area in
recent days appears to have blown out some of the nesting materials.  
Nevertheless
the nest structure appears more than adequate, sound and safe.

At this age,  the young are as large as adults and perhaps a little heavier due 
to
baby fat.  Studies have sown that is not unusual.  In 2005, the Bald Eagles 
nesting
on the Holston River in Hawkins County fledged two eaglets May 23 of that year. 
 
So Wayne Jones' estimate that the Hancock Co. young may fledge any day seems
on target.

This is the most northern latitude for a Bald Eagle's nest in East Tennessee.

Let's go birding.....

Wallace Coffey
Bristol, TN





 
=================NOTES TO SUBSCRIBER=====================

The TN-Bird Net requires you to SIGN YOUR MESSAGE with
first and last name, CITY (TOWN) and state abbreviation.
You are also required to list the COUNTY in which the birds
you report were seen.  The actual DATE OF OBSERVATION should
appear in the first paragraph.
_____________________________________________________________
      To post to this mailing list, simply send email to:
                    tn-bird@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx
_____________________________________________________________ 
                To unsubscribe, send email to:
                 tn-bird-request@xxxxxxxxxxxxx 
            with 'unsubscribe' in the Subject field.
______________________________________________________________
  TN-Bird Net is owned by the Tennessee Ornithological Society 
       Neither the society(TOS) nor its moderator(s)
        endorse the views or opinions expressed
        by the members of this discussion group.
 
         Moderator: Wallace Coffey, Bristol, TN
                 wallace@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx
                ------------------------------
                Assistant Moderator Andy Jones
                         Cleveland, OH
                -------------------------------
               Assistant Moderator Dave Worley
                          Rosedale, VA
__________________________________________________________
         
          Visit the Tennessee Ornithological Society
              web site at http://www.tnbirds.org
* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *

                          ARCHIVES
 TN-Bird Net Archives at http://www.freelists.org/archives/tn-bird/

                  EXCELLENT MAP RESOURCES
Topographical Maps located at http://topozone.com/find.asp
Tenn.Counties Map at http://www.lib.utexas.edu/maps/states/tennessee3.gif
Aerial photos to complement google maps http://local.live.com

_____________________________________________________________