Nature's Notebook

Eagles Ascendant: This year there have been what seem to be a plethora of sightings of bald eagles in our area, especially around Lakeville Lake, but also at Twin Lakes and Mudge Pond.  Scott Whalen has happily caught much of the action in Lakeville with splendid photos such as this one.  Many readers have written me with observations of eagles, adults and immatures both, and often ask whether eagles are nesting in the area.

Most recently – just last week, in fact – I received an e-mail from Larry and Ellen Gerber detailing a sighting of an immature bald eagle in a tree frequented by the eagles on Old CNE Road, which borders Lake Wononscopomuc.  They were careful to note, however, that they have not seen a nest.

Given that, I’m going to stick my beak out and say that the eagles are not nesting in Lakeville, though I’d welcome evidence to the contrary.  But just to satisfy my curiosity, I called Julie Victoria, the eagle specialist in the Wildlife Division of the Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection.  She did not have any information on eagles nesting in the Northwest Corner, which would tend to support my guess, but she added that it’s possible they could be nesting just over the border, in Massachusetts or New York, and she wouldn’t know about it.

What Victoria told me next was truly astonishing, however: This year, 15 pairs of bald eagles nested in Connecticut, and 10 of them successfully fledged a total of 16 young!  It was only 10 years ago or less that the Nutmeg State had only two nesting pairs, one on the Connecticut River and one in northeastern Litchfield County.  Of the 15 nesting pairs this year, the majority (eight) were on the river, two were in Litchfield County, and the rest were at scattered locations.

As Victoria put it, the eagle population in Connecticut has grown “exponentially†in the last few years, mirroring the nationwide trend that resulted in this majestic bird, our national symbol, being taken off the endangered species list this year.

Early-Bird Trees?  It seems to me that some trees started to turn very early this year.  I’ve seen a lot of reds and even some browns dotted throughout the landscape for several weeks now.  The entire eastern border of Mudge Pond was red by the beginning of September.  Has anyone else noticed this?  I’d be interested in hearing your observations, sent to the e-mail address below.

Fred Baumgarten is a naturalist and writer. He can be reached at fredb58@sbcglobal.net. His blog is at thatbirdblog.blogspot.com.