Posted Thursday, May 29, 2003

View nesting Bald Eagles June 12 and 14

Salt Lake City — Two adult Bald Eagles and their two baby eaglets will be the center of attention June 12 and 14 during Division of Wildlife Resources' Watchable Wildlife field trips near the southeast shore of the Great Salt Lake.

The trips will leave at 6 p.m. each evening from the Department of Natural Resources, 1594 W. North Temple in Salt Lake City. There is no cost to participate, but reservations are required. To reserve a spot call Bob Walters, Watchable Wildlife program coordinator for the Division of Wildlife Resources, at (801) 538-4771.

Participants will follow Walters in their vehicles, traveling on mostly paved roads to the viewing site. He'll have some spotting scopes and binoculars available, but participants who have their own are encouraged to bring them. "It'll be warm, so dress accordingly, and bring some mosquito spray," he advises.

Participants are free to leave the viewing site anytime during the evening.

Those who participate will be able to view the first nesting pair of bald eagles documented in northern Utah since 1928. Bald Eagles have used the present nest site yearly since 1996. Two eaglets have been produced each year except in 1999, 2001 and 2002, when three were successfully raised.

Walters says bald eagle pairs often nest at the same site each year and the adult eagles that will be viewed June 12 and 14 are probably the same pair nature enthusiasts have viewed at the site since 1996. The eagles are utilizing a manmade nest built as a replacement for their original nest snag, which was blown to the ground during a violent windstorm on June 13, 2001.

Walters said the eaglets should be learning to fly the second week in June, so there's a good chance those attending the mid-June field trips will watch as the eaglets make some of their first flights from their nest and back.

The eaglets will be about 10 to 11 weeks old by mid-June. They and their parents should remain at the nest site until early July, before leaving for other areas, Walters said.

In addition to the northern Utah site, Utah has three other active Bald Eagle nest sites. Two of the sites are near the Colorado River in southeastern Utah and one is near Price in central Utah.