As I drove near the entrance of the Magee Marsh parking lot, vehicles ahead of me slowed down and eventually stopped.
Not unusual at this wonderful wildlife area on the southwestern shore of Lake Erie, north of Oak Harbor, Ohio.
Magee Marsh is well known for its wildlife.
Especially for the flights of waterfowl and migrating songbirds seen each spring.
It didn’t long for me to discover why vehicles stopped.
A pair of Bald Eagles perched on the tree top, about 200 feet above us, peered across the open marsh.
When I first started coming to Magee Marsh, over 25 years ago when we would visit the beach (formerly part of Crane Creek State Park), Bald Eagles were a rare bird to see.
Twenty-five years later, Bald Eagles nest at and are frequently seen at Magee Marsh.
While it’s common to see them now in Ohio and Michigan, I’m always amazed when I see a Bald Eagle.
I’m about 2 hours south east of Oak Harbor and I had never seen a Bald Eagle in person until just a few years ago.
I came across a map that had the population of eagles in Ohio by county, comparing the difference from the 90’s to today. Many, if not most, counties had 0 and now I think all have at least a few, some up in that area had nearly 100!
That photo is fantastic by the way! I love the crazy hair and the angry old man face!
Hi Abby,
Thank you for your comment. Glad you finally saw a Bald Eagle in person, such incredible birds!
If you have a chance to visit the Oak Harber area in the next month, you’ll get a chance to see multiple eagles nesting. I saw three nests at Magee Marsh as well as several at Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge and Metzger Marsh (which are less than 5 miles away from Magee).
The old man face caught my attention right away!
That map you found sure sounds interesting, and likely similar to what we’ve seen happening in southeast Michigan for the past 20-30 years.