Eagles rebuild storm-damaged nest after devastating year
Published at | Updated atIDAHO FALLS — The wind is strong, but the eagles are proving stronger.
Ashley Weitzel watches from her tree house as the weather bends branches and the new nest sways. She’s intrigued watching the bald eagles in rebuild mode.
“It’s just so awesome to have them in my backyard,” says Ashley Weitzel, 12. “Sometimes we see the little baby head and see the mom, or dad I can’t really tell, on the top of the nest feeding the eagles.”
The pair of bald eagles nesting north of Idaho Falls lost their nest and two eaglets in a thunderstorm last summer. The storm happened about the same time the Weitzel family built their tree house with a spotting scope pointed at the nest.
Eagles rebuild in the same spot about half of the time. This time the odds favored the neighbors keeping watch.
“It has been a lot of fun to watch them build their nest and watch the babies be born and take their first flight,” says Lorin Pack, neighbor.
The birds rebuilt over the winter and two new eaglets are in the nest now. They are large, but still a few weeks from flying. Neighbors, including the Weitzels and the Packs, relentlessly watch the nest, especially on windy days, hoping to see this year’s eaglets try their flight feathers soon.
Outdoor journalist Kris Millgate is based in Idaho Falls, Idaho. See her work at www.tightlinemedia.comKris Millgate/www.tightlinemedia.com
