Thousands of visitors are expected this weekend to try to catch a glimpse of bald eagles in their natural habitat near Starved Rock State Park.
Kevin Ewbank, a park ranger with the US Army Corps of Engineers, says the national bird migrates this time of year to unfrozen bodies of water like the bottom of the dam at the Illinois Waterway near the state park.
Ewbank anticipates up to 7,000 enthusiasts and casual observers to come to see the formerly endangered species. “We’re set up with our education and information to help anybody from a newbie to an old hen to find something new about them,” he said.
Jolyn Wise, a natural resources coordinator at Starved Rock State Park , says, “They are majestic, absolutely beautiful, and people just are all about the eagles. They want to come out and see those eagles.”
Onlookers will be able to view the eagles from several outposts this weekend, but Ewbank recommends the visitor’s center at Starved Rock Lock and Dam. “The back wall is made of glass, so you can stand inside and watch them out the windows,” he says. “Or you can step out on the balcony and get that northern Illinois chill going.”
Wise says the chances of seeing bald eagles are very good this time of year. “We have right now on average between five to ten eagles that are being spotted in the Starved Rock area,” she said. “They tend to be a little more active in the morning, they feed at that time, but you’ll see them throughout the day.”
What's the big attraction? “It’s a combination of it being our national bird and being one of the biggest birds you’ll see in our part of the country,” Ewbank says.
Before June 28, 2007, the bald eagle was an endangered species. Today nearly 10,000 breeding pairs exist, according to the Starved Rock State Park website. “I think people like to see a success story in the environment,” Ewbank said. “We have six or seven nests just around the Starved Rock area that we know of.”
Several activities will be available during the observation event including a trolley service, a live falconer demonstration with a bald eagle, and access to volunteers' telescopes. “If there is any bird around that they can find, you’ll be able to get a very up-close look at it; so close that you can almost count the feathers on their forehead,” Ewbank said.