[Bristol-Birds] Austin Springs eagle pair: preamble to next year ?
- From: "Wallace Coffey" <jwcoffey@xxxxxxxxxx>
- To: "Bristol-birds" <bristol-birds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx>
- Date: Mon, 4 Jun 2012 22:22:03 -0400
A pair of mated Bald Eagles, which stymied our nest search at Austin Springs
on Boone Lake in Washington Co., TN this spring and demonstrated what we
thought were conflicting signs of active nesting, is probably now better
understood. They may have had a failed nest and are not now nesting.
Local field workers will
likely end the search
which has led to nest
seeking since late
March. We assume at
this point the eagles
have not successfully
nested because they
clearly would be seen
carrying food to the nest,
even when we haven't
been able to locate the
nest itself. All indications
suggest a nest failed
and they are still in the
Rick Phillips and Kevin Hamed return from nest search
(photo by Michele Sparks)
area, showing nesting behaviors (carrying nesting material, etc.) to maintain
the
pair bond but that is essentially the limit of their activity. They won't
renest if the
first nest failed.
This is probably just a preamble to a more organized nesting effort next year.
That seems to assume a lot by a few birders armed with binoculars. We would
agree, but our efforts went beyond casual looking. Much detailed field studies
have been carefully conducted and included a significant talent pool of advice
and
experience.
Not the least of our help has come from Dr. David A. Buehler who, in 2000,
wrote
the major Bald Eagle account for the Birds of North America published by the
American Ornithologists' Union and the Academy of Natural Sciences of
Philadelphia.
He has provided significant viewpoints that helped us get our minds around this
and he
suggested much of the final conclusion even through he has not been to the
Austin Springs area for the purposes of what we are doing. He worked mainly
from
information sent him by email.
He is Professor of Wildlife Science in the Department of Forestry, Wildlife and
Fisheries at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville and sits on Kevin Hamed's
committee for his doctoral studies at UT.
Dr. Buehler received his doctorate in Wildlife Science from Virginia Tech with
dissertation research on Bald Eagle ecology on the Chesapeake Bay.
As part of that study, he looked at distribution of breeding, nonbreeding, and
migrant
Bald Eagles. He has also focused on nonbreeding bald eagle communal and
solitary
roosting behavior and habitat use.
The pair, which has frequented the Austin
Springs area, has been particularly
difficult to understand. We have been
trying to determine if they have a nest or
is this likely a pair that does not have a
nest this year but is copulating and carrying
nesting material to maintain a pair bond ?
Most evenings, about 4 p.m. or later, they
come to the same dead tree high on a hill
above the shoreline at a barn on Degrasse Dr.
near the US 11E bridge .
They copulated on 15 May. We are aware
eagles may copulate outside of the egg laying
period and sometimes to keep the pair bond
established. After copulation, the female
followed the male to a dominant tree on a
ridge line about a half mile away.
Mated Bald Eagles in tree at horse barn.
(photo by Michele Sparks)
This suspected nest tree is a dominant tree near the top of a ridge at the
intersection
of US 11E and Willmary Rd. It is behind the Eastern Fly Outfitters tackle
store located
at that location.
Much monitoring, mapping and interviewing local citizens, established that the
major flight
lane to that location was a route along the main street from the staging or
evening perch
tree near a hilltop horse barn. We witnessed several flights from that
location that
appeared to be landing in or near the possible nest tree.
Since then, one of the birds has carried a long vine and small sticks as it
goes to roost
after sundown. The mate follows. It was first thought that was the nest tree
and the
material was being carried for sanitary purposes to refresh the nest. They
would circle
near that tree and appeared to go down into the trees near that location.
Kevin Hamed
and Rick Phillips searched the tree and ridgeline for 2 or 3 hours about a week
ago and
could not find a nest or excrement.
For a few evenings, the pair seems to fly maybe a mile or more in a western
direction
from their evening perches in the dead tree. They left a few minutes after
sundown.
From a monitoring location at the top parking lot of Winged Deer Park, they
were seen to fly
at considerable height above the average terrain and passed very high above the
suspected
nest tree. The flights were to the west of Devault Bridge. They appeared to
go down to roost
on the Johnson City side of the lake near the large bend in that area. This is
beyond the park
boat launching ramp and parking area. Daytime searches of that area did not
find a nest.
The female seems to be spending two to three hours each evening far away from
any
likely nest site. At an active nest in nearby Sullivan County, one of the
birds is almost
always nearby the nest.
NOTES:
Rick Phillips is a member of the biology faculty of East Tennessee
State University and a former U. S. Forest Service Research Biologist
who studied birds in the western NC mountains while stationed at
Clemson University. He was with the USDA Forest Service
Southern Research Station. He is not only a talented bird researcher
and photographer but also a former raptor trapper and bander in Northeast
Tennessee.
Kevin Hamed, assistant professor of biology at Virginia Highlands
Community College, was named the 2009 Virginia Professor
of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.
He earned his masters degree from ETSU and started his Ph.D. at the
University of Tennessee in summer of 2008. He continues to teach at
VHCC while pursuing his doctorate.
Michele Sparks is a fifth grade science teacher at Indian Springs
Elementary School. She will be one of two Sullivan County STEM
classrooms teachers this fall with her class at Indian Springs Elementary.
STEM is an important concept known as STEM Education,
It refers to the areas of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics
integrated into the entire curriculum. She was a member of the
Bristol Bird Club's Clinch Mountain Golden Eagle Group which helped
research eagles in Russell Co., VA in 2010-11..
Others who assisted with the project included Carolyn Coffey, Ramona Cress,
Bob Hatcher, Mike Poe, Joe Sheffield, Rhonda Sheffield and Dan Slonaker.
Wallace Coffey
Bristol, TN
Other related posts:
- » [Bristol-Birds] Austin Springs eagle pair: preamble to next year ? - Wallace Coffey
