Has Eaglet left the nest? Not seen March 23 and 26

Posted by NewMexiKen on Mar 26, 2012; 5:00pm
URL: http://bald-eagles-of-broward-county-florida.17.s1.nabble.com/Has-Eaglet-left-the-nest-Not-seen-March-23-and-26-tp7406651.html

Empty nest

We visited the nest at about 8:30 AM on Friday, March 23 and observed for 3/4 hour. Phil was there and he said he saw the eaglet on the nest the evening before. We saw neither the eaglet nor any adult eagles. We did not hear any calls.

As we watched, two ospreys joined the numerous vultures soaring over the nest. A Short-tailed Hawk (light morph) circled high to the west

A Merlin perched atop a dead tree behind and west of the nest.



The Merlin took flight.



We returned this morning at about 9:20 AM and watched for nearly an hour. Again, we saw and heard no sign of the eaglet and there were no adults in sight.



Has the eaglet fledged? As mentioned earlier, its siblings from earlier years left the nest a week or more earlier, and they branched and helicoptered for a week or more before taking their first flight. Absence of adults around the nest is also of some concern. Eaglets normally return to the nest to be fed for several weeks after their first flight.  

Please make an effort to stop by to look and listen for the eaglet. If adults bring prey to the empty nest in an attempt to lure the eaglet back you should here it call if it is anywhere nearby. Adults may also look in the direction of the eaglet if it has fledged. If uninjured, it is old enough to get back on the nest.

We have had anxious times in past years when it sometimes took over two days for an eaglet to return to the nest.