October Marks the Beginning of Bald Eagle Nesting Season in Florida

For one of America’s most iconic birds of prey, October marks the beginning of nesting season. While some Bald Eagles are year-round Floridians, many others migrate here from  cooler climes for the winter nesting months. Our EagleWatch volunteers have already seen eagles returning to their nests, adding more material in preparation for the season to begin. Typically, Audubon biologists expect to see eggs in nests by December or early January, and the incubation period is a little more than a month long. Eaglets remain with their parents for many weeks after hatching, so the "official" nesting season wraps up on May 15.

EagleWatch

Based at the Audubon Center for Birds of Prey, EagleWatch monitors Bald Eagle nests in Florida, documenting nest status, location, and possible disturbances or threats to nesting activities. As one of the premier community science programs in Florida, EagleWatch works to protect approximately 40% of the state's nesting pairs. These efforts provide information about  which areas are most critical to Bald Eagle population success, the threats those areas face, and how to best safeguard the health and longevity of those habitats while respecting the needs of local communities.

How to Help

Audubon is always looking for new EagleWatch volunteers. To learn more, click here.

To report an eagle nest in your community, click here.

History

Nearly brought to extinction by hunting in the late 1800s and later by the use of DDT in the 1950s, the Bald Eagle has made a comeback. After DDT was banned in the mid-1970s, Bald Eagle populations began to recover, and in 1995 the species was reclassified from “endangered” to “threatened” by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. By 2007, Bald Eagles were removed from the list of threatened and endangered species, having sufficiently recovered. 

Florida has one of the highest densities of breeding Bald Eagles in the lower 48 states. Although they are no longer on the list of threatened and endangered species, Bald Eagles are still protected by both state and federal laws. Their current threats include habitat and nest destruction, vehicle strikes, and territory fights. With continuing land development, many eagles are choosing to nest on human-made structures such as utility poles and communication towers. These non-natural nest sites can present unique hazards to the young eaglets when they fledge.

To learn more about the 2024-2025 nesting season, check our Audubon’s newest EagleWatch report here.

Audubon’s Center for Birds of Prey has been rehabilitating birds and advocating for eagle conservation since 1979. Its onsite Raptor Trauma Clinic treats more than 700 injured, sick, and orphaned raptors each year, and to date has released almost 800 Bald Eagles back to the wild.