Photographers Thrilled as Bald Eagles Make a Comeback on Long Island
Photographers in a small town in Long Island, New York have been thrilled by the growing presence of bald eagles in their community.
Centerport has seen a recent surge in the population of bald eagles and photographers are flocking to train their camera on the USA’s national bird.
Raptor enthusiast Rob Schwartz and his wife Elizabeth first noticed a pair of bald eagles in 2017 and they decided to make the Facebook page Bald Eagles of Centerport which now has over 32,000 members.
“The nest was right here in my backyard,” Rob tells CBS New York. “Essentially, all these people [on Facebook] are living daily with them, they know every day what fish they caught.”
“People are very infatuated with the pictures, the close-up shots we get of these birds,” adds photographer Christine Carron.
According to wildlife rehabilitator Bobby Horvath, bald eagles have made a comeback in the area because the government banned certain pesticides. He says that Long Island is the perfect spot for the birds.
“The right amount of water and food that didn’t have eagles, so I guess it was inevitable,” says Horvarth.
However, Horvarth says that because of the eagles’ territorial nature that sees them fighting one another, Long Island won’t become a haven for the apex predators.
But that hasn’t stopped Bald Eagles of Centerport from getting more and more excited about the birds, hosting “Rapor Day” on November 11 and even proclaiming September 25 to be “Bald Eagles of Centerport Day.”
Where is the Best Place to Photograph Bald Eagles?
Bald eagles are typically found near water and nest in large trees, they tend to nest in the same place all year but some migrate and return to breed.
According to the Birda.org, a birdwatching app, Acadia National Park in Maine is the best place to see the eagles. In addition, Acadia also offers the opportunity to photograph Atlantic puffins, peregrine falcons, and woodpeckers.
Birda ranks Olympic National Park in Washington as the second best spot and Pinnacle National Park in California as third. Yellowstone and Fort McHenry in Maryland round out the list in fourth and fifth
Image credits: Header photo licensed via Depositphotos.
