Today's News
A/CPB
Bald Eagle Migration Update: May 5, 1997
Peter Nye
| To: | Journey North |
| From: | Peter Nye |
"As I indicated in my last update, #N 98 looked like she was headed right back north to where she went at the end of March, before the severe cold front. Sure enough, latest readings put her smack in the same place in Quebec, within the La Verendrye Provincial Park. Certainly looking like that is where she calls home.
"Youngster # N 99 has also moved back north a bit, and also seems to like a Provincial Park. This time its Algonquin in Ontario, a beautiful place I went to as a kid. He's been hanging out there it seems. Here are the readings since last posting:"
- Link to Today's Satellite Data for Eagle #N 98
- Link to Today's Satellite Data for Eagle #N 99
Cheers,
Eagle Eye Nye
New York State Dept. Environmental Conservation
USFWS
First Bald Eagle in 100 Years!According to yesterday's New York Times, a bald eagle hatched this spring for the first time in 100 years along New York's Hudson River. Who do you suppose climbed to the nest to confirm this historic hatching? Peter Nye! He is pictured in the N.Y. Times hanging from a high limb, smiling broadly. The eagle hatched on April 19th, the day Nye's field assistant saw the parents deliver a fish to the nest--a clue a young eagle had finally been born.
Why 100 years? Even by the 1850's, eagles were rare in New York. Their nesting trees had been logged, and people had shot them--for their feathers, for sport, and because they ate fish which people wanted. After World War II the chemical DDT had nearly exterminated eagles in the lower 48 states. In fact, according to Nye, there was only one breeding pair in the entire state of New York by 1976, and the female was contaminated with DDT.
USFWS
That same year, Nye led the return of eagles to the state. He pioneered a reintroduction method known as "hacking". As he describes in his biography, he brought eagle nestlings to New York from Alaska & the Great Lakes states, and hand-fed these young eagles until they were able to hunt for themselves. The eagles Nye reintroduced are now finally breeding, and they are the ancestors of every eagle in the state.
USFWS
Last summer Nye climbed to nests across the state and counted a record number of eagles breeding in New York. From a low of 1 pair in 1976, there were 29 pairs and 37 "fledglings". (A "fledgling" is a young eagle that has successfully flown from its nest. Since so many young birds die before fledging, biologists often wait to count young birds until this point.)
Even though DDT has been banned since 1972 and eagle numbers are increasing, toxic pollutants are still a concern. This is because eagles are high on the food chain. Chemicals such as PCBs, carbofuron and other pesticides still threaten bald eagles. The health of the two eagles you are tracking is also being studied. When Nye captured eagles # N 98 & # N 99 this spring, for example, he collected samples of their blood so he could test for toxic pollutants.
If you would like to congratulate Peter Nye on the birth of this important bald eagle (and thank him for allowing us to "look over his shoulder" while tracking eagle migration this spring), you may send mail to him at the address below. (PLEASE: When you thank him, do not ask for mail in return.)
Peter E. Nye
New York State Dept. Environmental Conservation
Endangered Species Unit
Wildlife Resources Center
Delmar, New York 12054
Consider This
When Peter Nye climbed to the eagle nest to confirm the presence of an eaglet, he collected some of the fish the parents had brought to the nest. Why do you think he did this?
Challenge Question # 10
"Why do you think Peter Nye collected some of the prey from the young bald eagle's nest?"
To respond to this Challenge Question please follow the instructions at the end of this report.
Free Flights
As explained in our last update, eagles can migrate great distances with ease eagles when riding thermals. Challenge Question # 8 asked, "Where does the energy that fuels eagle migration come from?"
The Answer: From the Sun!
Follow this energy pathway, from the sun to the eagle: First, energy from the sun warms the earth. The warm earth warms the surrounding air and so the air rises, becoming a thermal.
The thermal carries the eagle upward, so that the eagle can soar & glide for miles. Thus, thermals (and other sources of wind energy) help fuel eagle migration. This energy originally came from the sun.
Just think: An eagle would need 20 times more food if it traveled by "powered" flight, flapping its wings the whole trip. As Daniel Sneider of Buffalo, NY realized:
"The currents in the air push the eagle, so the eagle won't use all it's energy up. So the eagle can flap its wings every so often."
dschneider@gateway.drew.buffalo.k12.ny.us
How Do You Know Heat Rises?
Thanks to Amanda Walker of Lock Haven, Pennsylvania for her response to Challenge Question # 9, "How do you know it's true that heat rises? What evidence do
you have from your own experience? For extra credit: Describe an experiment or
demonstration that shows heat rises. "
"I go to Lock Haven Jr. High and I am in 7th grade. I know it is true that heat rises because whether it is day time or night time, the floor of a room is always cooler than higher up near the ceiling. EXTRA CREDIT: An experiment you could do is put a pot or pan full of water on the stove. Then turn the burner on and wait until the water starts to boil. When it starts to boil you will notice that the steam or water vapor that comes out of the pot or pan is rising to the ceiling, not falling to the floor."
Amanda Walker
(userid@oak.kcsd.k12.pa.us)
How to Respond to Journey North Bald Eagle Challenge Question # 10
- Address an e-mail message to: jn-challenge-eagle@learner.org
- In the Subject Line of your message write: Challenge Question # 10
- In the body of the message, give your answer to this question:
Challenge Question # 10
"Why do you think Peter Nye collected some of the prey from the young bald eagle's nest?"
Don't Forget!
Please include the name of your school and your location so we can credit you properly for your answers.
The FINAL Bald Eagle Migration Update Will be Posted on May 19, 1997.