In May 2010, the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources (KDFWR) partnered with The Center for Conservation Biology (CCB) to attach 2 satellite transmitters to nestling bald eagles at Ballard Wildlife Management Area (WMA) in Ballard County, KY.  Two bald eagle nests were accessed for the project, each containing two bald eagle chicks that were between 50 and 55 days of age. 

The nests had been monitored by aerial (helicopter) methods and from the ground by trained biologists so that the age of the young were known before accessing the nests.  The young bald eagles needed to be 50-55 days old for the transmitter to fit correctly.  At this age, the eaglets cannot yet fly as their feathers still have much growing to do.  However, their bone structure and muscles have grown enough to ensure the transmitter will fit correctly for years to come.  One eaglet from each (2) nests was fitted with a transmitter and banded.  Since each nest had two young, the siblings were also banded.  The eagles wear a 70g solar-powered GPS-PTT satellite transmitter.  The transmitter is attached externally, like a backpack with a Teflon harness. Scroll down for pictures of the process. 

Solar panels recharge the transmitter's battery and we hope to receive three-five years of tracking data from each of these birds.  The transmitter will not affect the eagle’s ability to fly, forage, or breed.  Each transmitter, or tracking device, will allow KDFWR to follow the young bald eagle’s movements after fledging (leaving the nest). The transmitters will provide information on the dispersal, roosting and foraging patterns, as well as, the survival of each eagle. Since bald eagles usually start breeding at five years of age, we expect to learn more about the movement patterns of these eagles prior to nesting.  Nonetheless, we also hope the transmitter batteries will last long enough to give us some insight as to where these eagles choose to nest, as well. This is the first study tracking bald eagles using satellite telemetry in Kentucky.

Please visit http://www.seaturtle.org/tracking/?project_id=506 to view interactive maps of the movements of these bald eagles.  Or, visit our news page to learn more details about the tracked eagles.

Project Partners

This project was executed with the help of Bryan Watts and Libby Mojica of CCB. We very much appreciate their participation in this project!  This project was funded in part by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers.