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Virginia Eagles Weather Storm, Multiply=20
Sun Jun 27,10:57 AM ET Add Science - AP to My Yahoo!=20
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RICHMOND, Va. - Hurricane Isabel destroyed 72 eagle nests - about =
one-fourth of Virginia's total - but the big birds dusted themselves =
off, rebuilt most of the nests and produced 612 chicks this spring, a =
modern record.=20
"It's kind of surprising that with that many nests lost, productivity =
was so good," said Bryan D. Watts, director of the College of William =
and Mary's Center for Conservation Biology.=20
Scientists from the center survey eagle nests by airplane in winter and =
spring. Watts recently finished tallying figures from the 2004 survey.=20
"The population took a pretty good hit from the hurricane," Watts said =
of Isabel's September visit to Virginia. "We lost a lot of nests. But =
the pairs for the most part rebuilt in plenty of time for the breeding =
season" that began in December.=20
The hurricane blew 64 nests right out of their trees. In eight cases, =
the nest trees were blown over or snapped off. Some of the birds =
apparently were at work rebuilding their nests within a couple of weeks, =
Watts said.=20
But in places such as Northumberland County, the storm leveled entire =
patches of forest, Watts said.=20
"You'd have a pair in the area, but there was nothing to nest on. They =
pretty much sat the year out."=20
Eagles build huge nests of sticks, typically high in massive, old pines. =
Most of the nest trees weathered the storm well.=20
Some eagles disappeared after the storm. As a result, the number of =
documented pairs in Virginia dropped for the first time in five years, =
from 435 pairs in 2003 to 428 this year. But this year's 612 chicks were =
the most since the Virginia eagle survey began in 1977. The previous =
high was 501 in 2002.=20
The bald eagle nearly went extinct in the continental United States in =
the 1960s, largely because of the pesticide DDT. The pesticide, which =
eagles consumed in contaminated fish, made the eggs so brittle they =
broke under the mothers' weight.=20
Scientists credit the banning of DDT in 1972 and the passing of the =
Endangered Species Act in 1973 with putting eagles on the ascent. The =
species act helped protect the birds and their nests.=20
When the surveys began in 1977, there were just 33 pairs of eagles in =
Virginia. Now, Virginians are seeing eagles more and more of the big, =
brown bird with the white head and tail.=20
Eagles inhabit woods near water, primarily in the eastern third of the =
state. This year, eagles tended nests in 45 counties and nine cities. In =
1977, they nested in just 11 counties.=20
Petersburg was added to the list of eagle homes this year, when a pair =
chose Petersburg National Battlefield for their home. The nest is =
apparently a first for the Civil War battlefield, said Tim Blumenschine, =
a biologist with the park.=20
Park officials are keeping people 750 feet from the nest, which means =
visitors cannot see one of the fortifications. The area will reopen in =
mid-July, when the three young will have flown from the nest.=20
Federal officials plan to drop the bird from the list of threatened =
species. Before that is done, Watts said, he would like to see federal =
officials come up with a plan for protecting the birds' waterside =
habitats, which are increasingly being destroyed by development.=20
Virginia's annual eagle survey costs $25,000. The money comes from the =
state Department of Game and Inland Fisheries and federal agencies, =
including the Fish and Wildlife Service.=20
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Information from: Richmond Times-Dispatch=20
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