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  Destinations: Bald Eagle Nesting Areas Protected in Voyageurs
Voyageurs National Park has identified 17 bald eagle nest sites within the park boundary. Eleven of those areas are temporarily closed to campers and other human activities to avoid the disturbance of nesting bald eagles. "Each year since 1992, the park temporarily closes the land areas within ? mile of active bald eagle nests to help ensure reproductive success and the continued recovery of this population of our nation's symbol," announced Superintendent Barb West.
From the time eagles start nesting activities in late March, the park conducts a series of aerial surveys to identify the number and location of nesting pairs. "To date, we have identified 17 occupied territories for 1999 compared to 22 pairs in 1998 and 17 pairs in 1997," states park biologist Jim Schaberl." It's still too early to tell whether all occupied areas will be successful." Only 4 of the park's 208 developed visitor use sites are affected by temporary closures. Temporarily closed are Moxie Island dayuse site on Kabetogama Lake, Junction Bay North houseboat site and Day Marker 23 campsite on Namakan Lake and Diamond Island North houseboat site on Rainy Lake. Undeveloped areas and islands closed to human activity are marked with signs. On Kabetogama Lake these areas include West Zollner Island, Sheep Island, and an unnamed island east of Nashata Point. Areas closed on Namakan Lake are Sweetnose Island and Small Tombolo Island west of Junction Bay. Rainy Lake closed areas are Red Rock Island, Gull Beach Island and a area east of Reuter Creek.After the young leave the nest, which usually occurs by the middle of August, these areas will be reopened for public use. The closures are based on recommendations of bald eagle researchers from across the U.S. to land management agencies to prohibit visitor activity within ? mile of bald eagle nests during the critical nesting period. Boaters should not approach within the ? mile range of bald eagle nesting sites and adjacent land areas. Eagle nesting sites located near navigational channels are not closed, but park visitors should avoid lingering near the nests. According to park scientists, nesting birds are most sensitive to pedestrian disturbance, and that is the basis for closing the land areas immediately around the nests to visitor use. "People play a very important role in protecting nesting eagles and other birds," according to Michigan research biologist Dr. William Bowerman, who completed a study of bald eagles in the park. "May and June are particularly sensitive periods for nesting eagles. Eagles may still be incubating eggs until late May, and if flushed off the nest for too long a period, the eggs will become cold and the embryo can die. Or if the adults are continuously threatened, they may abandon their nesting efforts," Bowerman added. "Once hatched, it is during the first four weeks of life that the eaglets are most vulnerable," Bowerman explained. "During this time eaglets are unable to regulate their body temperatures, and need almost constant attention from an adult to protect them from cold winds and rain, or hot sunshine." Although eagles are frequently seen throughout the park, annual reproduction of eagles in the park is often below that of neighboring forest areas and below the levels recorded in the Northern States Bald Eagle Recovery Plan. Many factors can influence eagle reproduction and it is not clear how many factors are responsible for below- average reproduction at Voyageurs. Individual eagles differ in temperament and tolerance to human activities. Some are easily frightened and may abandon a nest site, whereas others are accustomed to human activity. Overall, reducing the potential for human disturbance has been documented to allow greater nesting success of eagles throughout the United States. Park staff requests that the public be on the alert for nesting areas and give them wide berth. Eagles are best observed with binoculars, not by close approaches to nests. For a close-up view of an adult eagle and a pair of eaglets visit the Kabetogama Lake Visitor Center. The exhibit includes taxidermy mounts of an adult killed while scavenging on a roadside and the pair of eaglets were lost when their nesting tree fell over in a wind storm, two of the many factors affecting bald eagle survival. May 9, 2000 Related Articles
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