A couple of weeks ago, I posted a photo of a Bald Eagle’s nest on the Old Mission Peninsula. Although we did not give a location as to where the nest is located, apparently word has leaked out.
We had a call from the folks who own the property on which the eagle’s nest is located. They said there’s been a steady stream of cars down the road near the nest, with some folks trespassing on their land to get a better look at the nest.
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While they understand the fascination with the nest, they’re concerned that the influx of cars and trespassers is disturbing the eagles, and they fear the eagles may abandon the nest and chicks and not return.
All that being said, they ask that you please respect the “No Trespassing” signs and not leave the roadway.
I will add that Spring brings an abundance of new life on the Old Mission Peninsula – not just eagles, but other animals like fox. I know of several fox dens on the OMP with lots of little furballs playing around the dens. It’s always a good idea to stay as far away as you can from these little homes so as not to disturb them. Thank you!
By the way, the photos of eagles, owls, fox and other wildlife you see on the Gazette are taken with a long lens, which allows us to stay far away from the subjects and not disturb them.
SUPPORT YOUR INDEPENDENT LOCAL NEWSPAPER: I started Old Mission Gazette in 2015 because I felt a calling to provide the Old Mission Peninsula community with local news. After decades of writing for newspapers and magazines like the New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Family Circle and Ladies' Home Journal, I really just wanted to write about my own community where I grew up on a cherry farm and raised my own family. So I started my own newspaper.
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And, as I posted in response to your article over a week ago, there are great eagle cams that people can access online. The viewer could never get any closer, visually, to seeing what goes on in the nest. Watching the behavior of the parents and the growth rate of the eaglets is so captivating. I encourage you, and all others who may be interested, to check out Hancockwildlife.org and also the Southwest Florida Eagle Cam (swfec) best accessed through the sponsoring website of the cam – dickpritchettrealestate.com. It is amazing.
The worries that the parents could abandon the chicks is very real. There used to be federal regulations that prohibited disclosing a nest’s location for that very reason. I spoke a few years ago to the feds when habitat was being destroyed up here that eagles overflew and they told me about regulations governing noise and physical presence near nests. Don’t know if the regs are still in force but I’m sure eagles are still easily affected.
Thanks Jane 🥰