Bonita Bay is very lucky to have 3 active eagle’s nests. They are located on Creekside #6, Spring Creek Park, and the Eagle Preserve in Bay Woods.

The American Bald Eagle is the national bird in the USA. By the age of four or five, adults develop a white head and tail and become sexually mature. Females are twenty-five percent larger than males weighing twelve pounds compared to males who only weigh nine pounds. They are thought to mate for life but if one passes they will find a new mate.

Their wingspan ranges from six to seven feet but Alaskan eagles reach up to eight feet. Nest trees must be high with good visibility and close to prey. The largest recorded nest was in Florida measuring ten feet wide and twenty feet deep in 1963. The average lifespan in the wild is twenty years and longer in captivity with a record in New York of 50 years!

Eagle’s nest located on Creekside Course #6 to the right opposite Ladies Tee. Unfortunately, we had a passing of one of our eagles, but we now have two nesting eagles!

The nest in Spring Creek Park is very high and best to view standing near the basketball area and looking in the distance with your back to the creek.

Bay Woods nest is in the eagle preserve and quite a distance in the middle. Look closely at the photo and you will see the female in the nest.

American Bald Eagle near the Creekside nest with prey.

– Featuring Maryle Barbé, Nature Photographer – Florida Master Naturalist