Satellite tracking of bald eagles in the upper Midwest

Abstract

We investigated the movement ecology of Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) that winter along the Upper Mississippi River Valley. During late autumn and winter from March 1999 through February 2006, we outfitted with satellite transmitters 14 wild-caught Bald Eagles (12 adults, 2 subadults) on a winter range or migration stopover point in southwestern Wisconsin. These birds wintered as far south as the Mississippi and Illinois rivers, northwest of St. Louis, Missouri. Summer ranges extended out from the Upper Mississippi River Valley migration corridor as far north as Arviat, Nunavut, Canada, on the western shore of Hudson Bay. Migration route fidelity was apparent, with two notable exceptions. Fidelity to summer and winter ranges also was apparent, but variable. Some eagles remained on a small range the entire season; others traveled extensively, often to the same areas in successive years. Spring migration mean start and end dates for adults were 24 February ± 23 (SD) d and 27 April ± 40 d, respectively. Eagles took from 6151 d to reach their summer ranges (mean: 67 ± 48 d). Mean start and end dates for autumn migration were 21 October ± 28 d and 11 December ± 16 d, respectively; travel duration ranged from 1577 d (mean: 51 ± 20 d). Individual mean straight-line distances between core winter and summer ranges ranged from 6112222 km (mean: 1655 ± 526 km). Our study provided new information on Bald Eagle movement ecology in a vast region where such knowledge was previously lacking. Compared to other tracking studies of Bald Eagles, our study documented greater variation in migration timing and duration, but similar range and route fidelity and distances traveled. © 2012 The Raptor Research Foundation, Inc.