National Bird Re-feathers American River Nest

SACRAMENTO REGION, CA (MPG) - Documented in 2016 as the closest recorded bald eagle nest to Sacramento, the eyrie on the American River was recently blessed with new babies.

Their hatching follows in the path of eaglets Peekaboo and Poppy (2017), Byrd and Rainbow (2018) and Valentine and Paddy (2019). While the chicks’ names have traditionally been suggested by local kindergarten children, all schools were closed by the Coronavirus epidemic when the 2020 babies busted from their baseball-size eggs. Government scientists will call the babies “Eaglets 7 and 8.” But having recorded the family’s progress for more than four years, I indulge a more anthropomorphic disposition for our national icon. The alpha I’ve called Courage. Its sibling is Hope. In dire times, Courage is what Americans always find. And Hope – said American poet Emily Dickinson – is the thing with feathers.

Courage and Hope’s fluffy heads barely clear the nest rim at this point. But, nourished by non-stop room service, they will soon achieve their parents’ great size. At 11 weeks, they will scramble surrounding tree branches while frantically exercising their wings. Soon after this branching stage, they’ll muster courage for maiden flights. Fledging days seem to involve high drama: in 2017, eaglet Poppy was knocked from the nest by her returning brother. Her premature flight took her to a low canyon tree where she screamed for 12 hours before Mama Bald coaxed her home. After Byrd’s 2018 debut, his return flight crash-landed near a walking trail. Human volunteers protected the fledgling while he ran flapping along the path. To our great relief, he finally cleared a fence to safety. Last year, hatching Paddy copied her more precocious brother’s fledge before she was ready. She plummeted and vanished among bluff trees for a day. Papa guarded the miscreant until Paddy at last found strength to get airborne and fly home.

Having raised previous families with an earlier (deceased) partner, magnificent Mama Bald is a nursery pro. Her mate is younger but, with four sets of eaglets sired, he’s become a confident dad. He and Mama share incubation, hunting and feeding duties but their diligent regime comes with sacrifice. Exhausted by months of providing and mentoring, mom and pop will complete their 2020 parenting season with an escape for a distant vacation. Courage and Hope will be left in the care of a non-breeding guardian or a courting sub-adult pair who plan to start their own nursery next year.  Food deliveries will guarantee the newcomers’ immediate acceptance. The appointed babysitters will also coach Courage and Hope to hunt and will eventually lead them to new territory. Hard lessons in self-sufficiency loom for the 2020 babies but by fall their rested Mama and Papa should return to prep for a 2021 family.

A testament to the regeneration of a species threated with extinction only 50 years ago, this family is well now established on the lower American River and is already subtly changing the Parkway’s wildlife dynamic.

Like the nation they represent, the species is resilient. Eagles are also selfless providers, committed to family and to preparing offspring for independence.  They control vermin. They neither waste nor pollute. By instinct, they are fantastic stewards of the natural world. It seems to this author that our national icon is well-chosen and from these fellow Americans – and from 2020 babies Courage and Hope – we might learn much.

Footnote: To protect the raptors’ nest its location is not contained in this report. Further wildlife observations may be followed on the author’s Facebook page: Susan Maxwell Skinner’s American River Nature Blog.