Early Golden Eagles – LIFE IN THE LOWER SUSQUEHANNA RIVER WATERSHED

Each autumn, Eastern Golden Eagles transit the Lower Susquehanna River Watershed as they make their way from nesting sites in eastern Canada to wintering ranges in the mountains of the eastern United States. The majority of these birds make passage during late October and early November, so when a Golden Eagle is observed at a local hawk watch during the month of September, it is a notable event. So far in 2021, both Waggoner’s Gap Hawk Watch north of Carlisle and Second Mountain Hawk Watch at Fort Indiantown Gap have logged early-season Golden Eagles, the former on the seventeenth of September and the latter just yesterday.

Two images of a distant Golden Eagle seen passing Second Mountain Hawk Watch on September 29th. Plumage indicates it is a “before-third-year” bird. Adult birds and birds born this year, the latter known as hatch-year or juvenile Golden Eagles, are the least likely to have already completed the journey from northern breeding territories to south-central Pennsylvania. This individual is very likely an immature Golden Eagle in its second year, but a view of the topside of the wings would be necessary to eliminate a hatch-year/juvenile bird as a possibility. Immature Golden Eagles, those birds in their second through fourth years, are the ones most at leisure to wander and show up as unanticipated visitors at unexpected times.

To learn more about identifying Golden Eagles and other birds of prey, be certain to click the “Hawkwatchers Helper: Identifying Bald Eagles and other Raptors” tab at the top of this page.

And for more specific information on Golden Eagles and how to determine their age, click the “Golden Eagle Aging Chart” tab at the top of this page.

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