Wildlife

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Raptors Rebound

 

 

 

Bald eagles and ospreys continue their dramatic comeback!

 

2022 was another record year for bald eagles in the state, with at least 82 active territories across 67 towns. Over the past three decades, at least 933 chicks have been produced by Connecticut nests.

The population of bald eagles is included as an indicator because the eagle is representative of species that require large areas of relatively undisturbed land near rivers or lakes where the birds can find adequate supplies of fish and other prey that are – very importantly – only minimally contaminated. 

_{Goal: Territories are resource areas used by eagles that have only one active nest. The goal for bald eagles is derived from the 1983 Northern States Bald Eagle Recovery Plan, prepared by the United States Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). The Plan established a goal of 20 breeding birds (10 nests) for Connecticut. According to experts in the Bald Eagle Study Group, Connecticut could eventually host up to 200 nesting eagles (100 nests).}

The 2022 mid-winter survey in Connecticut recorded 176 eagles throughout the state. Since 1979, observations of eagles during the Midwinter Eagle Survey have increased significantly.⁵⁰

 

By the 1950’s, the bald eagle was no longer a nesting species (extirpated) in Connecticut. The bald eagle was first declared an endangered species with the passage of the federal Endangered Species Act in 1973. Populations eventually began to recover due to the ban on the pesticide DDT, over five decades ago; the successful reintroduction programs of fostered chicks and fledglings; and habitat and nest protection measures. In 1995, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reclassified the bald eagle from endangered to threatened in the lower 48 states. Populations continued to recover enough that, in 2007, the bald eagle was officially removed from the federal Endangered Species List; however, bald eagles are still protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act and the Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act. When Connecticut's first official Endangered, Threatened, and Special Concern Species List was passed in 1992, the bald eagle was classified as “endangered”. Because of the increase in nesting pairs in recent years, the bald eagle's status in the state was reclassified as “threatened” in 2010.⁵¹

Osprey:

Another large fish-eating bird of prey, the osprey*, has rebounded in similar fashion to the eagle. From a low of nine nesting pairs in 1974, ospreys, counted by the Connecticut Audubon Society's volunteers, were seen at more than 606 active nests in 2022, meaning they were occupied by an osprey pair. The 606 active nests produced 835 observed fledglings resulting in a productivity rate of 1.38 fledglings per active nest.⁵²

 

 

Osprey, also known as the “fish hawk” feed primarily on fish; consequently, osprey nests are typically located along the Connecticut shore or proximate to water.

 

_{Goal: There is no established goal for ospreys in Connecticut, but ospreys are a “sentinel species,” meaning their health indicates the health of the environment around them. Ospreys are being monitored by the Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP), the Connecticut Audubon Society, and volunteers.}

_{Technical Note: *Data on fledglings for Osprey for 2014 was not available. Osprey counts in 2020 might have been affected by the COVID 19 pandemic.}

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⁵⁰ _{DEEP, CT Bald Eagles, 2022 Statewide Summary, Wildlife Division, Wildlife Diversity Program, and State and Tribal Wildlife Grants programs; personal communication from B. Hess, January 3, 2023.}
⁵¹ _{DEEP, Wildlife Division, Bald Eagle; portal.ct.gov/DEEP/Wildlife/Fact-Sheets/Bald-Eagle.}
⁵² _{The Connecticut Audubon Society, “2022 Osprey Nation Report”; www.ctaudubon.org/osprey-nation-map-data/.}