Bald eagle sightings on the rise

Published 5:07 pm Sunday, March 4, 2018

There have been more sightings of bald eagles in our area in recent weeks and now might be a good time for those who haven’t seen one but would like to do so to get out and look for one.

Mohamed El-Mogazi, an officer and member of the Gulf Coast Bird Club, said soon some of the eagles will be talking off, heading back north with the migration season.

“Not all of them will leave,” he said. “Some stay here yearround but some will also migrate. What we are now seeing is that more of them are staying than leaving. Some of the young ones, though, will leave.”

Migration period, he said, begins the first of March and the birds that leave are expected to begin returning in October.

According to documented reports, eagles seem to be moving toward our area from both the east — many nests have been seen in the Atchafalaya basin — and the north — Toledo Bend where many reside — portions of the state. 

He noted that our area is attractive to the bald eagles because of our marshes and the fish they can catch and large cypress trees in which they will build nests and return to each year.

Areas in which more people are seeing eagles now are the Sam Houston Jones State Park and the Lacassine National Wildlife Refuge.

A couple of weeks ago birders who took part in a walk at the state park hosted by the Gulf Coast club spotted a bald eagle.

Eagle nests in the Lacassine impoundment (there is a nature drive) have been noted for several years.

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Two local residents who have seen eagles recently were Hunter Perrin and Bill Shearman.

Perrin, who lives in the Geddings Estates neighborhood, which is south of town, said a bald eagle came down right in front of him.

He said there is a marsh area in back of his house and he saw the bird coming out of the west.

“It was about 8 a.m., it circled around and then came down right in front of a wood duck nest and picked up what I think was a mullet,” he said, adding that he was kind of stunned, but that it was unquestionably a bald eagle.

Perrin said a couple of weeks earlier he thought he had seen a pair of eagles but could not confirm that sighting. This one he could.

He really lives in an outdoor-type area as he has had coyotes come into his yards as well as otters and regularly watches wood ducks and ospreys.

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Shearman has observed a pair of eagles for some time.

“There are a pair of eagles who fish a cutover cypress marsh north of our home on River Road,” he said. “The marsh is very shallow and they particularly like to fish it when the tide is receding. 

“They are a joy to watch. There is a position in the practice of yoga called Eagle. In the pose you wrap your arms around each other in front of your chest so that only one hand protrudes. Then do the same thing with your legs so that only one foot protrudes.

“That is what an eagle does when they spot a fish. They turn themselves into a cylinder and then descend rapidly until they are right off the surface of the water. Then they spread their wings quickly, abort the descent and roll their talons down and impale the fish.

“They are strong enough in this maneuver to gain altitude even with a flopping fish in one talon. Prior to the hurricanes they used to nest in a dead cypress tree on the river and you could see the eagles rip a fish apart and feed it to the chicks.”