Birds of the Upper Cumberland Region: Species Accounts

Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)

Bald Eagle [lateral view of adult]: Photograph Credit: Stephen J. Stedman; City Lake, Putnam County, Tennessee; 6 March 2014.

Abundance: Uncommon during spring, summer, and fall throughout most of the Region, especially in counties where moderate- to large-sized lakes are present; Fairly Common during winter; recorded in 22 Regional counties (Map of UCR Distribution); data from the Regional bird-monitoring efforts indicate that the population breeding in the Region is probably increasing at a slow rate; the part of the wintering population that does not remain to breed is probably stable or also slowly increasing (see also Regional Bird-Monitoring Plan).

Status: Permanent Resident; photograph [immature in flight] (Edmund K. LeGrand; Lake Tansi, Cumberland County, Tennessee; 30 November 2011); photograph [lateral view of adult perched] (Judy C. Fuson; Hurricane Ridge Rd., DeKalb County, Tennessee; 28 January 2010).

Regional High Count: 92 (January 1993; Dale Hollow Lake, Kentucky and Tennessee; TWRA personnel, m. ob.; Note: not a one-county count).

Breeding: Confirmed (Recent).  Historically, the Bald Eagle was probably a breeder along the Cumberland River. Although much of that river was impounded during the mid-Twentieth Century, the conversion from river to impoundment did not reduce the suitability of the river valley as nesting habitat for eagles.  However, DDT contamination eliminated the breeding population in the Region by the early 1960s. Nesting resumed no later than the breeding season that began in late 1985 and continued through late summer 1986, when a juvenile was discovered along the Cumberland River near Granville, Jackson County, Tennessee, 19 July 1986 (Kurt Eichenburger, James D. Parrish photo; Stedman 1986d). By the 1990s and 2000s Bald Eagles were nesting at various sites around the Region, including Barren River Reservoir, Dale Hollow Lake, Cordell Hull Lake, and Center Hill Lake. A nest was established near Crossville during the late 2000s. 

Habitat: Large, tree-lined bodies of water, especially those supporting a large population of American Coots during winter.

YardWatch Results 2003 and 2004: Registered on 0 (of 125 possible) monthly check-lists during 2003 and on 2 (of 206 possible) check-lists during 2004, indicating that the Bald Eagle is a Rare species in yards and neighborhoods, few of which were surveyed at sites with nearby eagle populations.

Foray Results: A summary of data from UCR Forays follows (to view a map displaying foray data for a county or a sub-Region for this species, click on the name of an underlined county or state below):

* Because some foray blocks fall into two or three counties, the total of blocks in the Kentucky or Tennessee portions of the Region is less than the sum of the blocks in the counties of each portion of the Region; similarly, because some blocks fall into both states, the total of blocks for the Region is less than the sum of the blocks in the two states.

Remarks: Shooting of the national bird remains a source of mortality of at least minor significance; electrocution and other homogenically related sources of mortality suggest humans continue to contribute to the mortality statistics for this species more than ought to be the case.

    Preys on many species of waterbirds during winter, especially American Coot and injured ducks.  An eagle was observed harrying, capturing, killing, but not carrying off and consuming a Common Loon at Dale Hollow Lake (county undetermined) during the early 2000s (G. Nivens, pers. com.); an average-sized loon may be too heavy for an average-sized eagle to carry (weight of Bald Eagle: 3–6.5 kg [6.5–14 lbs]; weight of Common Loon: 2–8 kg [4.5–18 lbs]).

    Mid-winter surveys of Bald Eagles have been conducted during early January at several Regional lakes in Kentucky since the early 1980s and at several Regional lakes in Tennessee since the late 1970s; many data from these surveys may be viewed via the following links:

Check-lists of Birds for the Counties of the UCR

Check-lists of the birds of each county of the Upper Cumberland Region may be viewed by clicking on the links below. For each county, there are two check-lists: one list that shows the species that have been observed and where possible documented in the county within the larger list for the entire Region; and one list that includes only the species observed in the county with annotations for the date and observers for at least one sighting (the ultimate goal of the latter list will be to include annotations for the very first known Regional observation of each species in that county; this goal is probably one that will take many years to complete, if completion is even a possibility). To see if the species discussed in this species account has been observed in a county, click below or click on the link for the Map of UCR Distribution near the top of the page.

Check-lists of Birds for Some Public Access Birding Sites of the UCR

Check-lists of the birds of some public access birding sites within the Upper Cumberland Region may be viewed via the links below. To see if the species dealt with in this species account has been observed within any of these sites, click on the appropriate link below. See the pages for each county within the Gazetteer for links to additional smaller public access birding sites with check-lists in progress.

Literature Cited