Bald eagles and great horned owls are two of the first species to begin their mating and nesting season in our region.

They begin mating anywhere from the latter part of January until the first couple of weeks of March, and a week or two after mating they lay their eggs, usually one to three eggs. In both of these species many of them have already laid their eggs and are now incubating them.

I have often seen bald eagles in our area covered in snow sitting on their eggs by Valentine’s Day. It is remarkable the dedication these birds have to raising their young.

Later the same day they mated again, and I was in the right place at the right time. 

Each year I look forward to attempting to photograph the bald eagles mating, and this year was no different. It is a very hard shot to get because one has to be in exactly the right spot and ready at exactly the right time.

The actual mating process happens very fast, often lasting only seconds. Luckily for me though, each pair of eagles will mate several times over a few days. I say luckily because my first attempt went totally wrong.

I had gotten up very early and headed out on a frigid morning before the sun was up in order to be in position when they mated. I had been watching the pair and had a pretty good idea where the event was going to happen, so I arrived at the location in what I thought would be plenty of time. But to my dismay, just as I arrived I looked up and the mating was already beginning.

It happened so fast that I could not get the camera on them in time to get a single shot. It was very discouraging to miss the event by mere seconds. To make the event even more shameful for me, I noticed that a lady who was out walking her dog had noticed the event happening and filmed the whole thing on her cellphone. I since met up with her and we had a good laugh about it.

The eagles immediately begin bringing straw to cushion the soon-to-be eggs. 

Patience and persistence sometimes pays off though in the world of wildlife photography. The next morning I made sure I was there extra early and luckily the eagles mated again on the exact same branch. I got the whole event on film this time and then just as a bonus, later that same day they mated again in a different location and I happened to be in the right place at the right time and caught the event on film again.

Needless to say, I went home that day in a much better frame of mind than the previous day.

Now that the mating process had been taken care of, the eagles immediately turned their attention to nesting duties. They had already been bringing sticks and fixing up the nest, but now those activities intensified even more. One eagle began staying at the nest full time to protect it and keep it secure.

The male brings sticks to the nest under the watchful eye of the female. 

The other one that was not on nest duty began bringing straw and grass and mud to insulate and cushion the soon-to-be eggs. Both eagles take part in all the activities and take turns at each of the duties, and they are continually talking to each other.

It is fascinating to watch these majestic creatures preparing to bring a new family into the world. I truly hope you get to experience a little of the feeling through my pictures.

© Peterborough Examiner