Bald Eagles' Recovery in Louisiana
Bald eagles are making a steady recovery throughout the United States as well as Louisiana. The recovery has been so successful that in 1999, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service proposed that the bald eagle be de-listed as a threatened species. That delisting is expected to occur soon.
In 1972, there were only six or seven nesting sites in Louisiana. The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries began making aerial surveys to monitor known existing eagles in 1984. By 1985, the number of active nests had increased to 18. In 2004, there were 234 known nests. Terrebonne Parish in south Louisiana hosts about 60 active nesting sites.
Eagles appear to be expanding into newer areas near interior fresh-water lakes and reservoirs. Most of the known nests are located in the marshes between the Mississippi River and Vermillion Bay. Those marshes are attractive to eagles because of abundant food sources and large cypress trees which are used as nesting sites. Eagles typically nest in large pine or cypress trees near a large body of water.
They build the nest in a fork close to the top of the tree in stout branches. Nests are made of sticks and can be very large and weigh several hundred pounds. The female will lay one to three eggs, with two being the most common. The eggs incubate for 35 days, during which time the female rarely leaves the nest. The laying of eggs to first flight normally takes 16 to 18 weeks. Eagles grow fast and can fly after 78 to 80 days. Active eagle nests in Louisiana are currently producing eaglets at an average rate of 1.32 per nest per year. In Louisiana, eagles nest in the winter when pairs of birds ready a nest and lay eggs. Most egg laying is completed by November and the eggs hatch at the end of the year. By May, most eagles have left their nest and soon thereafter leave the state. Experts believe the eagles spend their summers in the northern states.
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