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Onondaga Audobon-Why Eagles Are at South End of Onondaga Lake

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Onondaga Audobon-Why Eagles Are at South End of Onondaga Lake

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With so many new members, here are some important reminders.

1. Locations for viewing Bald Eagles on Onondaga Lake are circled on the map below. Optics are optimal for viewing from the red and purple circle and may be less necessary from the green and blue circle. You can view eagles from your car in the Destiny USA back parking lot (head to west side of parking lot and view eagles in the tall trees behind the train tracks).

2. This is a major wintering eagle roost. Eagles come to the lake during the coldest times of winter when most waterways around CNY are frozen over. These birds primarily hunt fish, and require open water for this and the wastewater treatment plant next to the mall releases warm water which keeps ice off the southern end of the lake. This is one of the largest urban roosts for Bald Eagles in the Country so we are lucky to have it. We tend to have the most eagles in January-mid-March when CNY has its coldest temps. As many as 100 eagles have been observed at one time here.

3. Bald Eagle began returning to the lake more readily since the lake cleanup began wrapping up in 2012. Eagles are now found year round on the lake, but active nesting has not been observed. If you suspect an eagle nest, please report this to the administrator ASAP so that we can help protect it.

4. Please remember that Bald Eagles and other wildlife can be easily disturbed by human presence. Please do all you can to keep from disturbing these birds by staying at least 300 ft away from them at all times and keeping your voices low when eagles are present. This is not only the right thing to do, but required by state and federal law.

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Catching starving and frozen eagles that have lost muscle mass, lice exposure harmless to humans but gross and cool.

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EAGLE RESCUE, REHAB, AND RELEASE - Sitka Alaska

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Schreechy vs. Majestic

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EXTRA CREDIT CURRENT EVENTS ARTICLE  for discussion 99 MYA tick sucked blood of dinosaur

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EXTRA CREDIT CURRENT EVENTS ARTICLE  for discussion 99 MYA tick sucked blood of dinosaur

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99 million year old tick grasping (theropod dinosaur --> type birds evolved from) dinosaur feather with beetle larva preserved in amber.
Dinosaurs existed 250-66.5 MYA before they went extinct from an asteroid impact

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Ticks may be a disease-carrying menace for hikers and pets, but they're also masters of survival: The parasites were sucking the blood of dinosaurs 99 million years ago, according to a set of amber fossils from Myanmar. One of the samples, in which a tick is hanging onto a dino feather, provides the oldest direct evidence of what these ancient parasites ate.

The find is a "paleontologist's dream," says Ricardo Pérez-de la Fuente, a paleontologist at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History in the United Kingdom who helped lead the work.

The amber samples-hardened tree resin that can preserve animals trapped within in exquisite detail-held several clues showing that ticks fed on dinosaurs. The most direct evidence comes from the tick grasping a feather that belonged to a theropod dinosaur, a member of the group that ultimately gave rise to modern birds. Another includes two ticks together, both of which have hairs stuck to them from a type of beetle larvae thought to live in dinosaur nests.

It's unusual to find a parasite and remains of its host preserved together, and this is the first direct evidence we have that ancient ticks sucked dinosaur blood, says Pérez-de la Fuente. "It shows that the relationship between ticks and birds is an ancient one: It was present in the ancestors of both lineages." (Many modern ticks feed on birds.)

The samples-reported today in Nature Communications-come from a famous amber deposit in Myanmar thought to be 99 million years old. They were originally purchased from amber dealers by private collectors, who later donated the samples to museums. Scott Anderson, an amber collector in Pennsylvania, described one of the specimens, a blood-filled tick about half a centimeter long, at a paleontology meeting a few years ago. He was originally hoping that the blood might contain recoverable DNA, but it did not. He then teamed up with Pérez-de la Fuente and other colleagues to better characterize several of his samples. The researchers determined the specimens were a previously undescribed species of tick, which they named Deinocroton draculi, or "Dracula's terrible tick."

The hairs stuck to the two D. draculi closely resemble those found on a certain type of beetle larvae. Today, these beetle larvae live in bird and mammal nests, feeding on sloughed-off skin and feathers. They use the sticky hairs to fend off predators, and the hairs can end up collecting to form thick mats in nests where the beetle larvae reside, says Pérez-de la Fuente. "The most likely scenario is that the two ticks got entangled with the hairs when visiting the nest of a feathered dinosaur."

That's plausible, says Ryan McKellar, a paleontologist at the Royal Saskatchewan Museum in Regina, Canada, who was not involved with the work. For the beetle hairs to be preserved alongside a pair of ticks suggests they were trapped in the resin fairly close to wherever they encountered the beetle larvae. That was likely a nest, he says, although it's not clear what animal might have built the nest. "The authors have done a fantastic job of extracting every possible clue from these ancient snapshots."

doi:10.1126/science.aar7398

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99-million-year-old ticks sucked the blood of dinosaurs

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Ticks may be a disease-carrying menace for hikers and pets, but they're also masters of survival: The parasites were sucking the blood of dinosaurs 99 million years ago, according to a set of amber fossils from Myanmar. One of the samples, in which a tick is hanging onto a dino feather, provides the oldest direct evidence of what these ancient parasites ate.

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Bald eagles are powerful symbols of America-but there's a whole lot more to these quirky birds.

1. YOUNG BALD EAGLES AREN'T BALD.

So obviously adult bald eagles aren't really bald, either-their heads have bright white plumage that contrasts with their dark body feathers, giving them a "bald" look. But young bald eagles have mostly brown heads. In fact, for the first four or five years of their lives, they move through a complicated series of different plumage patterns; in their second year, for instance, they have white bellies.

2. BALD EAGLES SOUND SO SILLY THAT HOLLYWOOD DUBS OVER THEIR VOICES.

It's a scene you've probably seen countless times in movies and on TV: An eagle flies overhead and emits a rough, piercing scream. It's a classic symbol of wilderness and adventure. The only problem? Bald eagles don't make that sound.

Instead, they emit a sort of high-pitched giggle or a weak scream. These noises are so unimpressive that Hollywood sound editors often dub over bald eagle calls with far more impressive sounds: the piercing, earthy screams of a smaller bird, the red-tailed hawk. If you were a fan of The Colbert Report, you might remember the show's iconic CGI eagle from the opener-it, too, is making that red-tailed hawk cry. Listen for yourself and decide who sounds more impressive.

3. THEY EAT TRASH AND STOLEN FOOD.

Picture a majestic bald eagle swooping low over a lake and catching a fish in its powerful claws. Yes, bald eagles eat a lot of fish-but they don't always catch them themselves. They've perfected the art of stealing fish from other birds such as ospreys, chasing them down until they drop their prey.

Bald eagles will also snack on gulls, ducks, rabbits, crabs, amphibians, and more. They'll scavenge in dumpsters, feed on waste from fish processing plants, and even gorge on carrion (dead, decaying animals).

4. BALD EAGLES USUALLY MATE FOR LIFE ...

Trash and carrion aside, they're pretty romantic animals. Bald eagles tend to pair up for life, and they share parenting duties: The male and the female take turns incubating the eggs, and they both feed their young.

5. ... AND THEY LIVE PRETTY LONG LIVES.

Those romantic partnerships are even more impressive because bald eagles can survive for decades. In 2015, a wild eagle in Henrietta, New York, died at the record age of 38. Considering that these birds pair up at 4 or 5 years of age, that's a lot of Valentine's Days.

6. THEY HOLD THE RECORD FOR THE LARGEST BIRD'S NEST.

Bald eagles build enormous nests high in the treetops. The male and female work on the nest together, and this quality time helps them cement their lifelong bond. Their cozy nurseries consist of a framework of sticks lined with softer stuff such as grass and feathers. If the nest serves them well during the breeding season, they'll keep using it year after year. And, like all homeowners, they can't resist the thought of renovating and adding to their abode. Every year, they'll spruce it up with a whopping foot or two of new material.

On average, bald eagle nests are 2-4 feet deep and 4-5 feet wide. But one pair of eagles near St. Petersburg, Florida, earned the Guinness World Record for largest bird's nest: 20 feet deep and 9.5 feet wide. The nest weighed over two tons.

7. FEMALES ARE LARGER THAN MALES.

In many animal species, males are (on average) larger than females. Male gorillas, for example, dwarf their female counterparts. But for most birds of prey, it's the opposite. Male bald eagles weigh about 25 percent less than females.

Scientists aren't sure why there's such a size difference. One reason might be the way they divide up their nesting duties. Females take the lead in arranging the nesting material, so being bigger might help them take charge. Also, they spend longer incubating the eggs than males, so their size could intimidate would-be egg thieves.

If you're trying to tell male and female eagles apart, this size difference may help you-especially since both sexes have the same plumage patterns.

8. TO IDENTIFY THEM, LOOK AT THE WINGS.

People often get excited about a big soaring bird and yell "It's an eagle!" just before it swoops closer and ... oops, it's a vulture. Here's a handy identification tip. Bald eagles usually soar with their wings almost flat. On the other hand, the turkey vulture-another dark, soaring bird-holds its wings up in a shallow V shape called a dihedral. A lot of large hawks also soar with slightly raised wings.

9. THEY'RE COMEBACK KIDS.

Before European settlers arrived, bald eagles were abundant across the U.S. But with settlement came habitat destruction, and the settlers viewed the eagles as competition for game and as a threat to livestock. So many eagles were killed that in 1940 Congress passed an act to protect the birds.

Unfortunately, another threat rose up at about that time. Starting after World War II, farmers and public health officials used an insecticide called DDT. The chemical worked well to eradicate mosquitos and agricultural pests-but as it traveled up the food chain, it began to heavily affect birds of prey. DDT made eagle eggshells too thin and caused the eggs to break. A 1963 survey found just 471 bald eagle pairs in the lower 48 states.

DDT was banned in the early 1970s, and conservationists began to breed bald eagles in captivity and reintroduce them in places across America. Luckily, this species made a spectacular recovery. Now the lower 48 states boast over 9700 nesting pairs.

10. THEY'RE UNIQUELY NORTH AMERICAN.

You've probably heard of America's other eagle: the golden eagle. This bird lives throughout much of the northern hemisphere. But the bald eagle is only found in North America. It lives across much of Canada and the U.S., as well as northern parts of Mexico.

Though it may be North American, the bald eagle has seven close relatives that are found throughout the world. They all belong to the genus Haliaeetus, which comes-pretty unimaginatively-from the Latin words for "sea" and "eagle." One relative, the African fish eagle, is a powerful symbol in its own right. It represents several countries; for example, it's the national symbol of Zambia, and graces the South Sudanese, Malawian, and Namibian coats of arms.

11. THEY'RE AERIAL DAREDEVILS.

It seems too weird to be true: While flying, bald eagles sometimes grab each other's feet and spin while plummeting to the earth. Scientists aren't sure why they do this-perhaps it's a courtship ritual or a territorial battle. Usually, the pair will separate before hitting the ground (as seen in this remarkable set of photographs). But sometimes they hold tight and don't let go. These two male bald eagles locked talons and hit the ground with their feet still connected. One subsequently escaped and the other was treated for talon wounds.

12. THEIR EYES ARE AMAZING.

What if you could close your eyes and still see? Besides the usual pair of eyelids, bald eagles have a see-through eyelid called a nictitating membrane. They can close this membrane to protect their eyes while their main eyelids remain open. The membrane also helps moisten and clean their eyes.

Eagles also have sharper vision than people, and their field of vision is wider. Plus, they can see ultraviolet light. Both of those things mean the expression "eagle eye" is spot-on.

13. THEY MIGRATE ... SORT OF.

If you're a bald eagle that nests in northern Canada, you'll probably head south for the winter to avoid the punishing cold. Many eagles fly south for the winter and return north for the summer-as do plenty of other bird species (and retired Canadians). But not all bald eagles migrate. Some of them, including individuals in New England and Canada's Maritime provinces, stick around all year. Whether or not a bird migrates depends on how old it is and how much food is available.

14. THEY CAN SWIM ... SORT OF.

There are several videos online-like the one above-that show a bald eagle swimming in the sea, rowing itself to shore with its huge wings. Eagles have hollow bones and fluffy down, so they can float pretty well. But why swim instead of soar? Sometimes, an eagle will swoop down and grab an especially weighty fish, then paddle it to shore to eat.

Note that the announcer in the video above says that the eagle's talons are "locked" on a fish that's too heavy to carry. In fact, those lockable talons are an urban legend.
This story first ran in 2016.

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Bald eagles are powerful symbols of America-but there's a whole lot more to these quirky birds. 1. YOUNG BALD EAGLES AREN'T BALD. So obviously adult bald eagles aren't really bald, either-their heads have bright white plumage that contrasts with their dark body feathers, giving them a "bald" look.