They will return to the nest tree frequently and continue to be fed by the adults. As the chicks develop their flight skills they harass the adults and try to take fish from them. This behavior will last into September. As of October, the bond between the adults and their young will fade and the adults will no longer tolerate the harassment from their offspring. This is time when the young eagles leave the territory, usually heading north in the early fall to find good fishing grounds.
Eagles only travel as far as they have to in order to find food.
This is particularly true of adult eagles with established territories. Should a severe winter limit the food supply, eagles will move as far south as necessary to find open water and suitable hunting grounds. The young eagle will spend the next 4 years of its life wandering across eastern North America looking for summering and wintering areas where food is accessible. When they begin to mature at age 4, the eagle will seek a mate and establish a territory. The territory is usually located within 250 miles of the nest where the eagle was hatched.