At December's end many nature centers and bird clubs send teams of volunteers out to count the birds present within a geographic circle fifteen miles in diameter. When continued over many years their efforts provide information on the status of winter bird populations. Results from Christmas Counts done for many years at eight locations along the Hudson estuary show that only three bald eagles were recorded during the entire decade of the 1970s. In the 1990s the same counts recorded an average of fourteen eagles each year. Identifying a bald eagle is not difficult.
Eagles are the largest birds in our sky.
They soar on flat wings the size of ironing boards. Vultures fix their broad wings in a shallow V called a dihedral. The DEC's Hudson River Estuary Program will offer opportunities to learn more about bald eagles in coming months. All of these events are free of charge. A handful of anglers will continue to brave the elements along the estuary in December.