Golden eagle still around at 11am today. Found him perched about 100 meters east of Putnam Road and 0.2 miles south of Sibley Road. An hour earlier a raven occupied the same perch.

Jack Travelstead

> On Jan 3, 2019, at 3:34 PM, Liz Lackey <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
> 
> Hi all,
> 
> I forgot to mention that I saw a lot of gray squirrels and wondered about them being a food source.  Glad for the report from Zac that yes they are.
> 
> Since GOEA prey on snow geese, I imagine wild turkeys would also fit the bill.  However, if squirrels are plentiful, they would be a lot easier to “subdue” than a turkey.
> 
> We are so lucky to have this individual here to study.  I did look carefully at it’s back to make sure there was no telemetry equipment attached by Katzner’s Lab.  Also the legs had no bands.
> 
> Liz Lackey
> 
> 
> 
>> On Jan 3, 2019, at 2:06 PM, Zacheriah Cota-Weaver <[log in to unmask]> wrote:
>> 
>> Hello all,
>> 
>> I also spent some time watching the Golden Eagle on Sibley Road this
>> morning. It was perched in the southeast corner of the wishing well field,
>> preening while a group of turkeys walked directly below it. They did not
>> seem to notice or care about the eagle. As I watched, the eagle flew down
>> into the field, snagged a gray squirrel, and flew up onto a perch in a
>> different tree. There have been many squirrels in the corn stubble when
>> I've visited over the past several weeks. Perhaps with the glut of
>> squirrels this winter it is not worth the risk and effort for the eagle to
>> tackle larger prey, such as the turkeys. Maybe the turkeys have become
>> habituated to the eagle.
>> 
>> There has been an increase in Golden Eagles overwintering in the Northeast
>> in recent decades. I wonder if the increases in both the white-tailed deer
>> and wild turkey populations in recent decades have helped them. If you are
>> curious about Golden Eagles in the northeast, check out the work of the
>> Eastern Golden Eagle Working Group and the Katzner Lab. The camera trap
>> images are particularly impressive.
>> 
>> http://egewg.org/Home_Page.html
>> 
>> http://www.appalachianeagles.org/
>> 
>> Zac Cota
>> 
>> Sent from my iPhone