The eagles have landed in western Monmouth
Upper Freehold residents boast of rare raptor sightings in the area
BY JENNIFER KOHLHEPP Staff Writer
Wildlife sightings happen daily in a place like Upper Freehold Township, a rural community in western Monmouth County that is still largely untouched by development.

PHOTOS COURTESY OF VICKI WRIGHT A male bald eagle perches on and then swoops down from a tree near the track at White Birch Farm in Upper Freehold Township on Dec. 26. The consensus of the farm staff is that the same pair of raptors has been visiting the farm on and off for a couple of years.

Most residents have fun searching the landscape for beavers, raccoons, deer and even bears. Now, beyond looking for the occasional hawk and turkey vulture in the sky, residents have yet another reason to look up.

Bald eagle sightings in the area are increasing and locals ranging from young birding enthusiasts to farm employees have even captured on film images of the majestic creatures which are most recognizable as the national bird and symbol of the United States of America.

Jake Calvitti, 13, of Allentown, recently spotted an eagle eating a dead deer in a field off Walnford Road.

"We were surprised to see it and ran home and got a camera," Jake said. "I had seen eagles before but never around here, so it was pretty exciting."

Bald eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus) are found in Canada, northern Mexico, Alaska and throughout the contiguous United States, but are still considered endangered in New Jersey and threatened in America despite efforts to boost the species' population.

The birds of prey are distinguished as adults by their 7- to 8-foot wingspan, white head and tail, and dark brown/almost black body. The raptors live in areas of forest associated with bodies of water, which makes most ofMonmouth County a suitable home.

Despite its natural eagle habitat,Monmouth County is currently only home to two nesting sites, one at the Manasquan Reservoir in Howell and one on the fringes of the Swimming River Reservoir in Middletown, according to Dena Temple of the Monmouth County Audubon Society.

Although two may not seem like a lot, as recently as 1970 only one eagle nest existed in the state. Habitat destruction, shootings and poisonings had greatly reduced the eagle population, which further deteriorated from the widespread use of the pesticide DDT that caused eagles to lay thin-shelled eggs that easily crushed during incubation, according to information compiled by the Department of Environmental Protection's (DEP) Division of Fish and Wildlife.

The state listed the bald eagle as endangered in the New Jersey Endangered Species Conservation Act of 1973 and began managing the only nest in 1982. Biologists climbed the nest tree, retrieved the thin-shelled eggs and incubated the eggs in a lab underneath chickens before returning the babies to the nest.

To further bolster the population, the state also launched a program that released 60 eaglets from Canada into New Jersey habitat between 1983 and 1989. Those efforts, combined with the 1972 federal ban on DDT, led to the appearance of the state's second eagle nest in 1988.

Since the second nest appeared, the number of bald eagle nesting sites increased to a record 59 nests in 2006.

"The statewide population is increasing, but theMonmouth County population I believe is stable," Temple said.

In addition to nesting habitat, eagles also have habitat requirements for wintering, which might overlap their nesting habitat, though not necessarily. The wintering habitat, like that in areas of Upper Freehold, consists of large perch trees near a body of water.

The acreage at White Birch Farm in Upper Freehold may be a wintering habitat for bald eagles, given that staff members there have seen the same pair of eagles come and go during the cold months of the past two years.

Vicki Wright of Allentown, an employee atWhite Birch Farm, recently took photos of one of the birds munching on a goose.

"There were actually two of them there," she said. "One was keeping watch and the other was doing the munching.As I got a bit nearer to try and photograph them, the one keeping watch took off and flew into the trees on the other side of the track. The other one kept an eye on me and after a few moments decided [that] he or she didn't like my company and took off to the trees on the opposite side of the track."

One of the eagles returned Dec. 26.

"I had seen the one eagle flying around the farm (we can usually tell they're around be cause the resident snow geese get very agitated and very loud), but I couldn't get any photos," she said. "Later in the day, I took a look down by the track and saw him up in the tree, and he let me get off one shot of him in the tree and then he was off to the opposite end of the farm."

Wright said it has been a pleasant surprise for her to discover eagles in the area.

"They seem to be thriving and enjoying themselves," she said.

Wayne Smith, a member of the Allentown Environmental Commission, said he has lived in the area for 19 years but had not seen a bald eagle until last year.

"I spotted one (nonbreeding) flying over our house," he said. "I believe there have been many sightings at the (nearby) Assunpink Wildlife Management Area. This was the path of the one I saw."

The state completed a New Jersey Bald Eagle Management Project in 2006, which was prepared by Larissa Smith and Kathleen E. Clark. The report noted monitoring of 59 eagle pairs, 55 of which were active with eggs and three of which were territorial in a nest area. The report noted that five new nests were found, one in the south, three in central and two in northern Jersey. Forty-seven nests were successful in producing 82 young, but six nests failed to produce viable hatchlings for unknown reasons.

The report tallied a total of 192 bald eagles in January 2006, 40 of which were recorded in northern New Jersey and 152 in the south.

According to the report, the challenge to biologists and citizens now is protecting the lands and waterways that eagles use to maintain and enhance the species' recovery.

Jake, a member of the Audubon Society and the Sierra Club, advised that residents can help protect eagle habitat by voicing their opposition to rampant development in New Jersey and their support for land preservation.

"Don't pollute storm drains," the teen also advised, since the pollution runs into local waterways, which eagles need in

order to survive.