Bald Eagles (Minnetonka, Lakeville, Annandale: house, live in, moving)

[Green Onions]

Growing up in southern Minnesota in the 1970s and 1980s, I don't recall seeing bald eagles. Oh, I suppose some where occasionally there as migrants during that time and I just didn't notice them. But even when I moved back in 1996 (I live in southern Dakota County) I didn't routinely notice them. Now I see them all the time. I seem them overhead much of the time when I'm hiking along the Cannon River. And now I'm seeing them in locations much closer to human activity.

Three times early last autumn, I saw a bald eagle perched atop a light pole where Highway 100 crosses Minnehaha Creek.

And when the leaves fell in later autumn, I noticed a bald eagle nest not too far off I-35 (maybe 300') where it crosses Lake Marion in Lakeville. Every time I drive past (it's on my commute) I look for eagles. Once I saw one atop a beaver lodge in the lake. Sometimes I see one or both eagles perched near the nest. And of course, sometimes I see one in the nest (I've never seen two in the nest, though that might largely be due to the limited view from the freeway).

It's great to see such evidence of the recovery of the species!

[Ghengis]

We've had resident eagles that had been in this nest across the road and across a neighbors field for as long as we have been at our house (18 years). Last summer straight line winds knocked the top of this tree off right at the location of the nest. It appears they have move over a hundred yards or so and are currently rebuilding in another tree.

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[Clifford63]

Seems like Eagles are not to hard to spot in the metro these days. There is a pair of them that can be seen north of Highway 36 just east of 694. No nest, but they are there often. I see them over by fleet farm on a snagged tree too. Pretty sure it is the same pair.

[WILWRadio]

Bald Eagles like warmer climates. Unless someone starts fitting them with some warm winter hats (rabbit fur caps would be ideal) to cover their exposed heads, it is not likely that we'll see very many Bald Eagles except during warmer winters. LOL

Nice to see they are making a comeback in Minnesota.

[moving123456]

There was about 20+ of them in the trees along a 1-2 mile stretch of County Road 15 on Lake Minnetonka this winter just before the lake froze over.

I have never seen so many before. Probably about half were juveniles.

They stayed for about 2 weeks, then they all disappeared.

[Green Onions]

Though it's not in southern Minnesota, there's another eagle nest just off Highway 169 north of Aitkin -- it's a few hundred feet down a gravel road, perched right above the road atop a high wooden telephone pole. It was there in both 2010 and 2011, so the close proximity to people/traffic apparently doesn't disturb the pair.

It's nice to see them apparently thriving even amidst human activity.

[dober1]

As long as they have open water to fish they will stick around. If everything freezes over including rivers they will migrate. The cold does not faze them look at the eagle population in Alaska. But they must have open water.

[Radical_Car]

I know of a bald eagle outside Annandale by one of the many lakes(Clearwater Lake or Pleasant Lake I believe). I haven't been in that area in a while but last time i was i remember seeing the nest, and it's a huge nest.

[snofarmer]

The coast of Alaska is much warmer than it is is in MN
And we still see them after the lakes freeze over.
We have a lot of other food for them in the winter even tho they prefer fish they seam to really like deer, grouse and rabbits.


[SIZE=2]Not all eagles migrate.[/SIZE][SIZE=2]Some eagles are migratory while others are not. Many eagles in Florida do not migrate, but remain year-round. Most bald eagles migrate south in the fall to areas with sufficient food, and return north in the spring to nest. In the spring, the birds migrate quickly, but during the fall they migrate rather slow. They may remain in an area for a week or so before continuing on.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=2]
There are two subspecies of bald eagles. The "southern" bald eagle, Haliaeetus leucocephalus leucocephalus, is found in the Gulf States from Texas and Baja California across to South Carolina and Florida, south of 40 degrees north latitude. The "northern" bald eagle, Haliaeetus leucocephalus alascanus, is found north of 40 degrees north latitude across the entire continent. The largest numbers of northern bald eagles are in the Northwest, especially in Alaska. The "northern" bald eagle is slightly larger than the "southern" bald eagle.[/SIZE]


We seam to be seeing more and more of them.

[moving123456]

Originally Posted by moving123456

There was about 20+ of them in the trees along a 1-2 mile stretch of County Road 15 on Lake Minnetonka this winter just before the lake froze over.

I have never seen so many before. Probably about half were juveniles.

They stayed for about 2 weeks, then they all disappeared.

Here is a short article about it with a few pictures...

Eagles Put on an Aerial Show off Big Island - Lake Minnetonka, MN Patch

...and that is from the opposite side of the bay, so there was probably hundreds of them all around.

Just like the person in the article, I have spent most of my life in this area and never seen anything like it.

Here is a site with a picture of more than 12 in a single tree on the side where I was seeing them...

BehindTheFalls: Bald Eagles on Lake Minnetonka