Monumental Questions - Are there Bald Eagles in Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument?

Nate Lillge • April 27, 2022

Bald Eagle (Haliaeetus leucocephalus)

It depends on the time of year! The Berryessa Snow Mountain National Monument region is home to the state’s second largest population of wintering Bald Eagles (Haliaeetus leucocephalus). While here, the eagles can be found many places – Sacramento and Colusa National Wildlife Refuges, Capay Valley, Cache Creek, Putah Creek, Clear Lake, and Lake Berryessa.


Adult Bald Eagles are very distinctive – bright white head and tail with yellow beak. When soaring, their wings are held nearly straight out like a plank. Juveniles and eagles less than four years old do not have white heads or tails and can be confused with Golden Eagles (Aquila chrysaetos). When flying, young Bald Eagles show their mottled brown and white underside while Goldens are mostly brown with some lighter coloration. If you can see the bird’s feet and ankles, you can easily determine which it is. The feathers on the Golden Eagle’s legs reach down to their feet, covering their ankles. Leg feathers on Bald Eagles stop before the ankles, leaving them visible. Remember, Bald Eagles have bald ankles!


Bald Eagles mate for life and build large nests – up to eight feet wide and weighing more than a ton! Nest construction can take up to three months. Due to the large amount of work required to build a nest, mating pairs often use the same nest site year after year.


Their diet is fish and waterfowl, but they will also scavenge and steal food. When they catch a fish that is too big to carry away, they will use their wings as oars to swim back to land.


I have seen many Bald Eagles in they area from Woodland to Clear Lake. Some of my favorite observations of our national bird:


  1. Seeing two birds fight (while in flight) over a duck that one had killed.
  2. Watching a young eagle trying to catch a chicken. The chickens were too quick for it to swoop down on, so it tried hopping after them on the ground. Chickens are quick!
  3. Watching the waterfowl scatter when a Bald Eagle flies over. When I see a large number of birds take off at the same time, I know to look for a Bald Eagle.
  4. Looking down on a Bald Eagle soaring above Cache Creek while hiking the Redbud Trail.


-Nate Lillge; nlillge@tuleyome.org


Adventures and Engagement Director


Certified California Naturalist

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