Seeing bald eagles flying overhead near our house in Crystal City is always exciting, and fortunately it has become more common in recent years. I know several people in Jefferson County who have reported nesting pairs throughout the year.
Proximity to the Mississippi River makes our old river town a potential location for spotting one of our national symbols in its natural setting, especially in wintertime. With a wingspan of up to eight feet, the bald eagle is one of the largest birds of prey in the world.
For the past several years we have picked a winter weekend to travel north to Grafton, Ill., at the confluence of the Illinois and Mississippi rivers, but after weeks of bitter-cold temperatures we might have seen more eagles if we had stayed closer to home. The ice pack above the Melvin Price Dam at Alton was mostly solid all the way up to Grafton.
I have attended Eagle Days events hosted by the state Department of Conservation in the past. This year the department will hold informational programs at the Howard Wood Urban Outreach Office in St. Louis Feb. 3, but the big event will be a cooperative with the Audubon Center at Riverlands Migratory Bird Sanctuary in West Alton, Mo., from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday, Feb. 10. Experts from the World Bird Sanctuary and a live bald eagle will be on hand for an “All About Eagles” program scheduled for 9:15 a.m., 10 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 12:15 p.m., 1:45 p.m., and 2:30 p.m.
Meet-and-greet events at 10:45 a.m. and 1 p.m. will allow participants to get a photo taken with sanctuary naturalists and their bald eagle companions. Other popular photo possibilities include a life-size bald eagle nest replica or the giant eagle wingspan banner.
Hopefully warmer weather will break the ice block, or at least shrink it, to improve the chances for visitors to see the big birds fishing along the river. Regardless of the weather, the Audubon Center’s festival will offer close connections to the bald eagle.
In previous years we had driven past the Riverlands sanctuary, so this time it was the first stop on our annual winter trip. Maintained by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Rivers Project, the 3,700-acre sanctuary on the banks of the Mississippi includes a large bay and wetlands areas. During Eagle Days, visitors can see eagles through spotting scopes.
Visitors are advised to dress warmly, wear comfortable shoes for walking and leave pets at home. For more information online, visit EagleDays.org. Free parking is available, including overflow parking with shuttle service at the nearby Lincoln Shields Recreation Area.
Eagle Days is made possible through a partnership of the Missouri Department of Conservation, Illinois Department of Natural Resources, Great Rivers Greenway, the St. Louis Audubon Center and the Corps of Engineers.
The largest natural area breeding populations of bald eagles are in Alaska and Canada, but during the winter, the Mississippi River hosts one of North America’s largest concentrations of bald eagles. As waters freeze farther up north, the eagles move south in search of open water and their favorite food – fish.
For those who can’t fit a visit to Riverlands into their schedule for the special event, any day (although closed on Mondays) can provide outstanding outdoor opportunities and diverse bird viewing. The sanctuary has almost six miles of hiking trails along and around the ponds and marshes in the wetland areas. The property also provides access to Edward “Ted” and Pat Jones Confluence Point State Park, where the Missouri River joins the Mississippi just south of Alton.
On the cold January weekend when we visited the bird sanctuary, a flock of a dozen trumpeter swans flew in formation above us. We didn’t see as many eagles as usual, but the special welcome made us eager for our next visit.
John Winkelman has been writing about outdoors news and issues in Jefferson County for more than 30 years and was the Associate Editor for Outdoor Guide Magazine. If you have story ideas for the Leader outdoor news page, e-mail ogmjohnw@aol.com, and you can find more outdoor news and updates at johnjwink.com.