The subject of what happens to the original Decorah nest was raised when R4 asked one of her always thought provoking questions. "Will the eagles re-use a nest that has been occupied by great horned owls?" We were discussing the Wolf River situation where Bonnie, the GHO, took over the BE nest there and the likelihood of the BEs reclaiming it or something similar happening at Decorah. I did a bit of research and haven't found the answer to R4's question just yet, but I did find out that the bald eagle will continue to maintain "ownership" of an abandoned nest for up to five years. They may also come back and re-use an abandoned nest.
From the AEF:

Zitat

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"Abandoned" Nests: Bald eagles often use different nests in different years. Though the nests are built near each other, and it may seem that the eagles are not using the nests, the nests may be used again at another time. Even when both male and female eagles die, nests are likely to be taken over by another pair if the area is not damaged. For these reasons "abandoned" nests should be left alone for at least five years.

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I need to keep reading....

Very interesting! I can't wait to see what you dig up on that Pop. I'll always wonder if the Decorah eagles built a new nest because of the new cams going in the old one. Maybe they didn't like so many people stomping around in their house. I also remember concern about the old nest falling, which it will at some point, because it had gotten so heavy. I wonder if somehow the eagles themselves sense in some way that it's maxing out on weight?

In my reading I saw a comment that there was a nest in New Hampshire(?) that was observed for over 45 years! I guess it was a pretty awesome tree.

The mystery to deaths of two dozens bald eagles in Utah has been solved: West Nile Virus was the culprit.

http://boisestatepublicradio.org/post/we...ald-eagles-utah

Here is more info regarding the question of whether bald eagles will use a nest that has been usurped by GHO. Remember that last year the Sutton Center nest at Sequoyah was taken by GHO's? Well, guess who has been spotted today on the nest? Bald eagles! This one bears watching for further info, even though the cam is not great.

http://www.suttoncenter.org/pages/live_eagle_camera

I ran across this today while I was looking for info on the Berry nest. I'd really like to know when in Jan. 2013 their eggs hatched but can't find an actual date. Oh well, this is pretty nice to have a profile on each nest.

http://www.judyb-eagles.com/eagles/nest_info.htm

This is a really good documentary on the American Bald Eagle. Wasn't sure if this had been posted or not so I put it here again. This is the one the Decorah Eagles and Bob Anderson is in. Worth the watch.

Published on Oct 8, 2013 by GuitarsAndHeroes

Whenever the highly respected Bryan Watts quotes an expert, it is likely to be Gary Bortolotti. Taken from Bortolotti and Gerard's excellent book The Bald Eagle. Haunts and Habits of a Wilderness Monarch, here are Bortolotti's observations on bald eaglet sibling aggression:

“Unlike the young of some species (such as the Black and Crowned Eagles of Africa, the Lesser Spotted Eagle of Europe, and sometimes the cosmopolitan Golden Eagle), Bald Eagle chicks that I saw die from sibling competition did not go out in a bloodbath. The dying young I've examined were never severely injured; instead they gradually starved. Fighting among chicks creates a dominance hierarchy, a pecking order. The older eaglets peck their siblings into submission and so prevent the younger birds from obtaining an adequate amount of food for survival. As sad as it sounds, remember that it may be a mechanism that adjusts the number of young in the brood to the food supply. Food shortages later in the season might cause the entire brood to perish if one chick is not eliminated early in life.”

“If chicks are going to die from sibling competition, they almost always do so in the first week or two after hatching... The closer the combatants are in size, the less frequently overt aggression is used... If a female is hatched first and a male second, the male is subordinate because of his smaller size. I have seen many fish brought to such broods; it is only after the female is satisfied that the hungry male has a chance to feed.”

Bortolotti relates this incident that occurred in a nest with two chicks. He later determined the sex of the chicks: C1 was female; C2 was male. C1 was the larger chick and usually pecked little C2 into submission. Bortolotti says:

“... on this day I was taken by surprise. The heads of the eaglets swayed back and forth as if blowing in the wind. In a flash, little C2 lunged forward and bit C1 on the side of the head. The force of the attack knocked C1 backward into the nest. C2 held on. I could not believe my eyes; C2 was twisting and shaking C1 from side to side. This was no ordinary fight. C1 was trapped against the rim of the nest cup where she had fallen and now could not right herself. C2 took advantage of the situation and pummeled C1 – peck, bite, shake – over and over. It wasn't long before C1 began to call out with a high-pitched chittering sound. I had only rarely heard this distress call before. Peck, bite, shake; C2 showed no sign of diminishing his assault. To my surprise, the adult stepped over to her brood, bent down, and took C2's bill in hers. Gently she rocked her chick back and forth several times. C2's entire body moved from his mother's efforts, but it wasn't enough to make him relinquish his prize. C1 chittered even louder now as she flailed helplessly about. When would it all end? It seemed to go on forever. The adult gave up on trying to pull the combatants apart. Instead, she straddled her chicks and plunked down on top of them. Both chicks disappeared as the adult rocked from side to side in an exaggerated manner. Seventeen seconds later, or more than a minute after the launch of the attack, C2's head popped up through his mother's feathers.

“I was bursting with curiosity. How was C1? Was she seriously injured? It wasn't until more than an hour later, when the adult male landed on the nest, that I finally got a glimpse of C1. As the brooding female stood, C1 squatted up, apparently no worse for the beating she had taken earlier. I had never seen anything like today's fight, and I never did again. C2 was absolutely subordinate to his big sister for the remainder of the time they spent together in the nest.”

Very interesting R4! I know it's all the balance of nature and all that but it would truly do my heart good to see little bit at SWFL Eagles beat the crap out of his big sister like the description above. The submissive behavior I see in him as a result of her attacks tears at my heart and infuriates me. But at the same time I marvel at the awesome eagle his big sister will grow up to be and imagine how she will defend and protect her own chicks with that same fierce aggression we are witnessing in her now. If we were seeing her as an adult in that situation we would all be cheering for her and talking about what an awesome eagle mom she is.

Some Eagles just don't know when to let go.