Advertisement

Raptor rapture in Tampa Bay

 
Patrick Bradley, volunteer head trainer at the Boyd Hill Nature Preserve’s birds of prey program, is shown with Abiaka, a bald eagle who resides at the preserve after getting injured in a fall from a nest in 2010.
Patrick Bradley, volunteer head trainer at the Boyd Hill Nature Preserve’s birds of prey program, is shown with Abiaka, a bald eagle who resides at the preserve after getting injured in a fall from a nest in 2010.
Published Feb. 6, 2015

ST. PETERSBURG — Standing in a parking lot of a deserted shopping center on a Sunday morning may not seem like your kind of outdoor adventure. But if you like bald eagles, this is a surefire way to see them.

"He knows we are here," Gabe Vargo said, pointing at the beefy bird sitting atop the cell tower. "His mate's on the nest. Hopefully we won't scare them off."

When I'm out on an adventure, there's nothing I like more than seeing a raptor in action. Most Floridians are used to seeing osprey, sometimes called a fish eagle or fish hawk. Driving over the Howard Frankland Bridge one recent morning, my keen-eyed son counted 20 of these princely birds perched atop the light poles.

Eagles, like their kin the osprey, are doing well. Pinellas County has 39 breeding pairs of eagles, including the previously mentioned male and female on the cell phone tower.

"They seem to like it there," said Vargo, who has been tracking these particular birds for nearly a decade. "We are close to Lake Maggiore, so there is plenty for them to eat."

Vargo, a former professor of Marine Science at the University of South Florida, is a volunteer "eagle watcher" for Florida Audubon and a long-time bird handler at nearby Boyd Hill Nature Preserve, which is my go-to spot for a quick raptor fix.

On Saturday, the Preserve will host its annual Raptor Fest, which brings cool birds from all over the state. Boyd Hill's Environmental Center also has its own bird of prey aviary with a dozen or so residents you can visit on a regular basis.

My favorite is Abiaka, the bald eagle. He fell from his nest on Honeymoon Island during the 2010 nesting season. He cut his right wing and severed two tendons, which could not be reattached, so he could not fly and survive in the wild. His rescuers named him Abiaka after the Seminole leader. According to Vargo, the legendary warrior Abiaka "embodied the qualities of an eagle: bravery, pride, defiance, independence."

Boyd Hill has had its share of wild bald eagles nest in the preserve over the years. Because most eagles mate for life, bird watchers such as Vargo really get to know the birds. In Florida, most bald eagles begin gathering the materials for nests in late September or early October. These birds will lay eggs from October through April. Vargo suspects that the female on the cell tower was sitting on eggs but there is no way to tell for sure until the young hatch.

Most bald eagle nests in Florida are built within a couple of miles of water. Lake Maggiore, with its supply of bass and panfish, is a good hunting ground for these birds of prey which feed mostly on fish. Eagles often have more than one nest so they can move around and look for food.

Eagles and osprey often fish the same waters, and it is not uncommon for the larger bald eagle to harass an osprey in flight to make it drop its catch. The untrained eye may sometimes confuse the two.

One way to tell the difference is size. Bald eagles are larger and have a dark chest and white tail. Eagle nests are also larger than those of the osprey, and made with larger woody material. They nest in the largest tree in the area, or sometimes a manmade structure such as a cell tower.

Stay updated on Tampa Bay’s sports scene

Stay updated on Tampa Bay’s sports scene

Subscribe to our free Sports Today newsletter

We’ll send you news and analysis on the Bucs, Lightning, Rays and Florida’s college football teams every day.

You’re all signed up!

Want more of our free, weekly newsletters in your inbox? Let’s get started.

Explore all your options

Ospreys are smaller than eagles and have a white chest. Their nests are smaller and lined with grasses, vines and other material. These birds of prey like to nest platforms, the tops of sign posts, even channel markers.

But the easiest way to learn more about these fascinating birds is to head to Raptor Fest. You won't be disappointed.