Eagle at the vicinity of the Nest

[JuanT]

Yesterday on my way home I saw an eagle flying over Miami Gardens Dr and the I-75 exit, he/she was flying away from the nest heading North over I-75. I went to the nest but I didn't see any activity. I waited at the vicinity of the nest and an eagle landed on one of the pine trees close to the nest. I was unable to take any pictures or wait any longer since it started storming.

Today I went back to the nest and no activity was present, I waited and an eagle landed again on one of the pine trees around 75 feet from the nest. I took some pictures and waited until dark, but the eagle never went to the nest.

I will go back Saturday early morning to see if I have better luck spotting activity on the nest.

Here are some pictures from today.

[NewMexiKen]

Beautiful photos, Juan! It will be important to determine whether this bird and mate will breed here again this fall. Restoration/renovation of the nest usually begins by late September or early October. The shape of this bird suggests that it is a male, but it is easier to determine this if both are seen together. Male is generally smaller and body is more tapered towards the tail. Females have a noticeably longer hallux  (hind toe) and the gape of beak may extend back to or beyond the middle of her eye.

We never determined whether this nest produced any eaglets last season, though they were seen at the nest numerous times during breeding season.

Thanks for joining us on the FORUM and we look forward to your contributions!

[JuanT]

Went back this afternoon....same results...Pictures below...Looks like the eagle is returning to the same place every evening

[NewMexiKen]

This is good news, Juan. Probably there to protect the nesting territory. Hope he has or will find a mate.

[JuanT]

Eagle didn't return neither Saturday nor Sunday...but it was sure back there today!

[NewMexiKen]

Thanks again for your interesting observations and photo, Juan--

This is possibly a different eagle. Impossible to say for sure, but it looks more bulky and it appears to have a thicker neck and rounder head than in the earlier photos. Profile images of the head might permit comparison of size of beak and depth of gape. Photos of feet may provide a gauge of length of hind toes of each.

Of course, finding two at once would be great!

You might start a new topic with the date of each observation rather than continue the same string, although I must admit it is very convenient to just scroll up and down to compare the photos.