Breathtaking sight of bald eagles more and more common in county

I had a tiny slice of heaven all to myself.

It was just a short distance through a grove of fluttering spring aspens, and I was knee deep in an unnamed diamond-clear lake while mindlessly watching my Sierra Bright Dot artificial fly float to the rippled surface.

This postcard-beautiful lake was mounted like a sparkling jewel in a massive granite setting in the crown of California’s Sierra Nevada range.

There was not another fisherman in sight.

That suddenly changed when a bald eagle plunged from the sky, flared its wings at lake level, extended his yellow talons, and snatched a large rainbow trout from the water, not more than 100 feet in front of me.

Wow, I didn’t mind sharing my secret spot with this fisherman.

Now many years ago, this was my first breathtaking encounter with a bald eagle.

I was stunned by the beauty, size, power and hunting accuracy of the magnificent creature.

I had seen eagles before, but never like this. He didn’t seem to care that I was there. We were up close and personal, and it allowed me to marvel at this glorious bird with a wingspan that was wider than I am tall.

I gasped at the sight. I was honored to be ringside for Nature’s show.

Since that event I have enjoyed many wilderness encounters with bald eagles. Unfortunately, most of those encounters were not around here.

Most have been in faraway wilderness settings, including a trip to the wild coast of northern Vancouver Island, considered to be a population center for these apex raptors.

I still gasp at every eagle encounter, and it happened again last week, this time, right here at home.

Driving by a North County lake, I spotted the unmistakable white head and flared tail of a soaring bald eagle. I pulled over to watch and was rewarded with a view of the huge bird diving down and snatching a trout from the water.

Returning the next day, I spotted the bird sitting in the branches of an oak tree that overhangs the lake. He was watching, eagle-eyed, for a meal swimming just below the surface. He seemed unconcerned as I photographed him from the roadway.

There was a time, not too many years ago when there were no bald eagles in San Diego County.

Illegal hunting, loss of habitat and the effects of a pesticide known as DDT had reduced bird numbers to near extinction. In 1972, the use of DDT was banned, and a year later the eagle was given protection as a federally designated endangered species.

Since then, eagle numbers have climbed.

In San Diego County it was rare to see nesting eagles, with only one recorded nesting pair between 1930 and 2005 when locals were delighted by active nesting at Lake Henshaw. They affectionately named the adults Fred and Ethel after the characters on the “I Love Lucy” television series. Watching the nesting activities of Fred and Ethel became quite the community focus.

As bald eagle numbers increased, their range has also expanded, and now most local lakes have either resident birds or regular migrant visitors. Currently, there are two known bald eagle nesting sites in San

Diego County.

The presence of manmade lakes has helped that, by providing a place for them to hunt.

Eagles are primarily fish eaters, so local reservoirs offer a food source for these winged hunters. While they do prefer fish, they will also prey on rabbits, reptiles and amphibians, and other bird species, including gull and ducks.

Food, habitat and expanding numbers means more eagles are being seen.

The online program ebrid.org shows recent sightings of bald eagles at Otay Lakes, Sweetwater Reservoir, El Capitan Reservoir, lakes Ramona, Hodges, Jennings, Wohlford, Henshaw and Cuyamaca, Ramona Grasslands and Batiquitos Lagoon.

The growing numbers of bald eagles here is a wonderful sign that nature continues to recover from mistakes of the past.

The heart-thumping excitement of seeing a bald eagle in the wild is something that every lover of the outdoors should experience without having to travel to far away wild places.

It seems the eagles have returned to San Diego County, and they are a sight to behold.

Wildlife volunteers

If you love the outdoors and nature, the California Department of Wildlife is looking for you.

The state agency is looking for Natural Resource volunteers to work in the San Diego County area.

Volunteers for the program will attend a training academy sometime in March or April. Exact dates are not set.

Volunteers will do a variety of things, including assisting game wardens and department biologists, assisting with public calls for help with local wildlife issues, habitat conservation projects, hunting and fishing regulation guides, hunter education classes and assistance with licensing exams for falconry and trapping.

Volunteers must be able to give at least one day each week from 8 a.m. until 2 p.m.

For additional information or to register as a volunteer, contact Bob Gaskin at bobgas54@roadrunner.com, or call (858) 3499794.

Email ernie@packtrain.com or visit erniesoutdoors.blogspot.com.

ERNIE COWAN Food, habitat and expanding numbers means more bald eagles are being seen.