Where Eagles Fly

Written By: Stephanie Contreras, Highlands Cashiers Land Trust | Issue: March 2025 | Photograph By: Andrew Renfro

The Bald Eagle is a bird of prey native to North America with a large range that includes all 50 U.S. states.

Due to a primary diet of fish, they’re typically found around large bodies of water with old-growth forests nearby for nesting. A large bird, adult eagles typically weigh 10-15 pounds, boast wingspans between 5-7 feet, and build the largest nest of any bird in North America; after annually adding new material to reinforce the nest, it can eventually be as large as 13 feet deep, eight feet across, and weigh more than one metric ton! With an average lifespan of 20 years, each eagle pair typically mates for life and reuses the same nest over many years.

Because of the Bald Eagle’s huge size and impressive nests, they rely on old-growth forests and wetland ecosystems during their breeding season. Their preferred trees are over 66 feet tall with an open structure and large branches for perching, roosting, and nesting. Nesting pairs seek areas with minimal human disturbance. Female eagles produce between 1-3 eggs per year, and parents take turns incubating their eggs and hunting for food or nesting materials.

During the mid-20th century, Bald Eagle populations were severely affected by a variety of human-caused environmental impacts such as loss of suitable habitat due to logging, legal and illegal hunting, pollutants such as DDT, and lead shotgun pellets from scavenged carcasses. By the 1950s there were only 412 nesting pairs in the lower 48 states.

The Bald Eagle was initially protected in 1918 under the Migratory Bird Treaty, later gained greater protection through the 1940 Bald and Golden Eagle Protection Act, and was declared an endangered species in 1967. Environmental awareness, including from publications such as Silent Spring, helped inform the public about the impact of human pollutants in natural systems. As a growing initiative of conservation organizations focused on preserving their habitat, Bald Eagle populations rebounded. In 1995, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service reclassified the species from “endangered” to “threatened” and in 2007 it was de-listed entirely. Today, there are more than 71,400 nesting pairs of Bald Eagles across the lower 48 states.

The Bald Eagle teetered on the brink of extinction but made a miraculous comeback due to the efforts of groups of people dedicated to preserving these magnificent animals and their habitats. The Highlands-Cashiers Land Trust is proud to contribute to the conservation of our natural resources.