Missing Bald Eagle? Concerns Rising Over Duke Farms Male

HILLSBOROUGH, NJ — Concerns have risen that the longtime Duke Farms male Bald Eagle could possibly be missing, said Conserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ on Sunday.

Duke Farms's Eagle Cam, which offers a 24/7 live stream channel for viewers all over the world, has been following one male Bald Eagle since the nature preserve in Hillsborough banded him in 2000 along with his female partners.

Conserve Wildlife Foundation of NJ offered an update on the status of the nest.

Both of the young Bald Eagles, which hatched in late February and took their first flights in late May, are doing well and make frequent appearances at the nest, according to the Foundation.

On Saturday an adult dropped off a fish and was mobbed by the juveniles.

"There has been some concern that the male could possibly be missing, due to not being seen as much and the female bringing in most of the prey," according to the Foundation.

The male is 23 years old and is NJ banded bird (A59).

It has been difficult to see if the banded male has been to the nest recently since the adults don't spend much time there anymore.

Two adults did make an appearance at the nest with the juveniles on May 31. However, officials could not see if the birds were banded on the camera.

"Could this be the old male or a new male? We don't know and won't know until we can confirm the male is either banded or unbranded," said the Foundation.

Some have asked if officials will go searching for the male in case he is injured or dead. Officials said they work directly with the NJ DEP ENSP and at this time will not be searching.

"The area around the nest is very thick with vegetation and at this point the adult could be anywhere. We also don't know if there is anything wrong. I realize that it is easy to get attached to these eagles, but this happens at eagle nests all the time and we never know if there is a new bird in the pair," said the Foundation.

Viewers might not know until the next nesting season the fate of the male eagle. The Foundation will post updates as they get them.

The Duke Farms Eagle Cam was installed in partnership with the Conserve Wildlife Foundation of New Jersey. The Eagle Cam also serves as a tool for teaching about wildlife and its many facets like animal behavior, bird biology, natural history, endangered species, food webs, and more.

• See Related: A Bird's Eye View Of America's National Bird: Duke Farms Eagle Cam

To catch a glimpse of the Bald Eagles, watch the Dukes Farms camera live at dukefarms.org/eaglecam.

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