Golden eagle rarely seen in these parts

By Thelma Dalmas
Published: August 19, 2008

Most of us are familiar with the success story of the bald eagle during the past 25 years.

Across the eastern United States, the species has recovered from the low numbers of the early 1970s, and the population reached a point last year that permitted its removal from the endangered species list. Here in Central Virginia, we have two active nests along the James River from which three young were fledged this summer.

Unfortunately, the story with the golden eagle is not as cheerful. This species has never been common in the state. A pair nested in Highland County in 1935, and the last summering birds were reported from Massanutten Mountain in Shenandoah County in the early 1940s. Although we do have records of migrating birds every autumn, there has been no report of nesting in Virginia for more than 60 years.

In 2007, Patti Reum, from the Bath-Highland Bird Club initiated a project to learn more about the distribution of this species in the state. Winter sightings had become fairly common in the Monterey area, and she hoped that a project could be developed to place a radio transmitter on one of these Virginia birds. With the help of the Virginia Society of Ornithology, local bird clubs, and individual ontributions, more than $7,000 was raised.

Volunteers from across the state spent countless hours in Highland County documenting the presence of golden eagles and trying to determine the most likely spot to attempt a capture. Motion-detector cameras were set up and bait stations were installed. On March 17, banders from the Center for Conservation Biology trapped a 3-year old female golden eagle on Tamarack Ridge in Highland County.

The bird, to whom Patti Reum gave the name “Virgil Caine,” was banded, fitted with a radio transmitter and released later that day. The bird remained in Highland County through the end of March, took a short flight east into Augusta County, then headed north in early April. By the first week of May, Virgil had reached the Bay of Fundy in Canada. She has spent most of the summer in the Chic-Choc Mountains, near the Saint Lawrence River.

Of course, the really interesting question is whether Virgil will return to Highland County this winter. This is the first golden eagle to be tracked with radio telemetry in Virginia and we don’t actually know what to expect. The project is expected to continue through 2010, so many new discoveries may be in store. We are all hoping that by early December, Virgil will be soaring once more over the ridges near Monterey.

News and Notes
Hummingbirds are increasing at the feeders as the birds try to accumulate the reserves of fat necessary for the southern migration. By the end of this month, some of the birds will begin to leave. Our normal departure date for this species is around mid-September, but I have had birds at my feeder through the first week of October. Leave your feeders in place until a week after you see the last bird. You may want to try to keep one feeder out through November on the chance that you might attract a western vagrant.