By Jessica Templeton, JRA's Ecology School Manager
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| Photo by John Bragg |
A group of juvenile Bald Eagles have been putting on quite the show of airborne acrobatics this spring on the James River near Presquile National Wildlife Refuge. The past couple mornings groups of students visiting the Ecology School and JRA staff have witnessed these young bird’s antics inspiring many “ohhhs” and “ahhs” as the eagles swoop, soar and bomb through the sky like fighter pilots; turning on a dime and tumbling away from each other as they play “chase.” Between playful stints in the sky, we have also witnessed the five young eagles scavenging a large fish carcass (best guesses being a blue catfish or sturgeon) from the vantage of a large log that had been beached on a mud flat during a low tide. The term “juvenile” can be misleading when picturing the size of young Bald Eagles as even an immature eagle’s large wingspan and girth can be an awe inspiring sight. Bald Eagles are some of the larger birds found in the sky above the James River, with an average wingspan of about 6 to 8 feet, and weighing in at about 10 to 14 pounds.
Juveniles do not have the distinctive white head and tail that mark a mature Bald Eagle, but are covered in a mottled white and brown plumage from head to tail. It takes about four to five years for a Bald Eagle to fully mature into their white head and tail feathers. Other markings that distinguish a juvenile eagle are darker bills, and varying speckles of white feathers on their underwings, backs and bellies.
For more information on Bald Eagle identification tips: http://www.mbr-pwrc.usgs.gov/id/framlst/i3520id.html
To learn more about the impressive recovery of Bald Eagles populations on the James River please visit:
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