Georgia Eagle Nesting Soars To New, Record-Setting Heights

By Ammoland Editor Joe Evans

SOCIAL CIRCLE, Ga. -(Ammoland.com)- The number of active bald eagle nests in Georgia reached a record high this year, the state Department of Natural Resources announced today.

Statewide aerial surveys detected 218 occupied nest territories. That eclipses the previous record of 210 in 2015 and marks the third straight year that more than 200 active bald eagle nests have been documented in Georgia.

Mirroring a comeback across the species’ range, bald eagles have rebounded in the state from no known nests in 1970 to nests this year in at least 68 counties, according to survey leader Bob Sargent. In the last 10 years, the number of occupied nest territories in Georgia has almost doubled.

“The recovery of the bald eagle in Georgia is a truly inspiring success story. This is a 7-foot-wide soaring example of the effectiveness of the Endangered Species Act,” said Sargent, a program manager with DNR’s Nongame Conservation Section.

At least 142 of this year’s nests were successful, fledging a total of 218 young eagles, an average of 1.5 per successful nest. Four nests appear to have fledged as many as three young. In 2016, 149 of the 201 occupied nesting territories …Read the Rest

Source:: AmmoLand