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The bald eagle
The bald eagle is the national bird of the United States. Its image appears on many American government seals. But when I used to kayak-guide in Clayoquot Sound, I found it ironic that many Americans only see a bald eagle for the first time here in Canada. To residents of Tofino and Ucluelet, a soaring bald eagle is almost a daily sight.
Bald eagle populations fell into decline in the U.S.A. as a result of both DDT pesticide use, which kept the birds from reproducing successfully, and as a result of hunting. By the mid-1950s, a bald eagle population that was estimated to have been in the hundreds of thousands had fallen to just 412 nesting pairs (in the U.S.A., excluding Alaska). The bald eagle was placed on the endangered species list in 1967, and DDT was banned in the U.S.A. in 1972.
Hunting and pesticide use had also affected eagle populations in Canada, although not to such a degree. With the pesticide bans and tougher hunting regulations, eagle populations have rebounded in both countries - but with the rich and pristine coastal forest habitat along the northwest coast, the populations are most vibrant in British Columbia and Alaska. In the U.S.A., the bald eagle was reclassified from "endangered" to the less serious category of "threatened" in 1995; it was de-listed as a threatened species in 2007.
Bald eagles are unmistakable - even the most novice birder has no trouble identifying them. Young eagles are entirely brown, usually with white speckles on the feathers. They only get the white head and white tail when they reach five years of age. The plumage of the males and females is identical, although the females are substantially larger.
Bald eagles are considered to be sea eagles, an ancient genus (Haliaeetus) with only eight living species - but with representatives on every continent except Antarctica. Here on the West Coast, bald eagles are nearly always seen alongside the ocean, or near lakes and rivers. They are more scavengers than hunters - but I have seen them hunting healthy diving ducks off the ocean, terrorizing a duck from above until they are too exhausted to dive any more, and I have seen one pluck a mink off the mudflats. For the most part, they scan the ocean and shorelines with their eagle-eyes, looking for dead fish or other carrion.
Potlatch dancer with eagle tail-feathers
Eagles are respected and revered by the local Nuu-chah-nulth people. Eagle down is scattered at important ceremonies, and the white tail feathers are used together as a time marker, almost like a conductor’s wand, for drumming, singing and traditional dances.
Eagles can be seen here nearly year-round (although I have noticed that they tend to be scarce in Clayoquot from mid-August to mid-September - presumably because they have all gone to some salmon river). Many of the whale-watching trips can get you quite close to bald eagles, as the drivers know where their nests and their favourite perches are. If you are looking to get a great eagle photograph, then a whale-watching trip with a telephoto lens may be your best bet. But if you don’t care about the picture, and just want to see the eagles - then keep your eyes peeled: from the beaches, from the docks, even from downtown Tofino or Ucluelet. Because they are all around!
- Photos & text by Jacqueline Windh©
