The eagles are back, at least more than there were a year ago.
The annual eagle count in the Brackendale area took place on Sunday morning, once again with the Brackendale Art Gallery serving as mission control.
This year’s count of 698 eagles was a bit of a surprise, especially in light of counting difficulties at a few of the less accessible sites. The sites with the most eagles were Upper Squamish (117) and the Lower Cheakamus (110).
The count numbers have been lower in recent years, with last year’s count of 411, marking the first time with fewer than 500 eagles.
The Squamish Environmental Society, which runs the Eagle Watch program, stepped in this year as a transitional move, to assist Thor Froslev of the Brackendale Art Gallery, who started the count in 1986. Froslev and the BAG, however, are still hosting this month’s Eagle Fest.
Last month, Froslev said he would not guess how many eagles there would be, though he had noticed a decline recently compared to the early years.
“There used to be a lot more eagles here,” he told The Squamish Chief.
Squamish Environmental Society chair Carl Halvorson said they had been expecting a lower count, in part, because there were parts of Upper Squamish, the Cheakamus and the Pilchuk that were not accessible for the usual raft count because of snow and ice on the water.
“We anticipated a low count,” he said. “There are simply areas we can’t count this year.”
One group had to snowshoe or cross-country ski into an area of the Upper Squamish Valley that they might have been able to reach by car in other years.
Even with the increase over last year, the number falls into line with many of the counts in recent years. These, in turn, represent a decline from the early years when the counts typically numbered in the thousands. The largest count was in 1994 when 3,769 eagles were spotted.
There are a number of factors that can affect either the amount of eagle or how they are counted, Halvorson says.
The most significant is the number of salmon to eat. Another is when cold temperatures freeze salmon carcasses the eagles feed on to the ground, making them difficult to pick up. Precipitation also plays a role, as heavy rains in the fall can wash away the salmon carcasses.
As well, snow on the trees can make it difficult for people who are counting to distinguish eagles from the surrounding branches, as was the case on Sunday.
“Today’s a ‘Where’s Waldo?’ day,” Halvorson said.
He adds it was a natural move for the society to take on the responsibility to coordinate the count because it fits in with the organization’s mandate as well as activities such as the Christmas bird count.
“We’re looking more at the data side of it,” he said. “We want to make sure the data collection continues…. We’re hoping to integrate it with the Christmas bird count.”
There were some pleasant surprises during Sunday’s count, such as when one group led by citizen scientist Larry Murray of the Squamish Environmental Society saw two separate herds of elk along the Squamish River just south of Eagle Run viewing area.
“I’m usually seeing them in twos or threes, but I’ve never seen the full herd,” Murray said. “This is extremely rare, folks.”
Together, the two herds were estimated at 34 or 35 animals.
In all, there were about 50 to 60 volunteers taking part in the count in areas around Brackendale, as well as other locations known for eagles.
Halvorson says the Squamish Environmental Society is working to refine the mapping for the areas to help ensure that groups do not overlap, as he cites examples like the railway bridge where three count areas overlap.
“We don’t want people counting the same birds,” he says.
He also hopes the counts will continue to provide data so that researchers can get detailed looks to compare populations of eagles in particular areas over time.
