Tanveer Ali of the Detroit News has a recommended article about the return of bald eagles to Monroe and Wayne Counties.  The Detroit River International Wildlife Refuge plays a big role in the story.  Excerpt and link:

Although the bird thrives best in the wooded areas of northern reaches of Michigan, some are adapting to lifestyles of Wayne and Monroe counties. There are at least seven active bald eagle nests in the Detroit River watershed and western Lake Erie, considerable progress since there was none in the late 1980s, according to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.

Some human activity in Metro Detroit may actually benefit bald eagles, Hartig said. Nearly 50 eagles spent their last winter feeding on fish near the hot water discharge at the Monroe power plant in Monroe County.

Last week, a 65-foot utility pole was erected at Humbug Marsh in Trenton masquerading as the ideal tree for an eagle’s nest. It may take a year or more for the “tree” to be occupied. Even then, other birds like the also-resurgent osprey may declare squatters’ rights.

“We thought this might be a way of attracting a nesting eagle in there,” said Dave Best, a biologist for the Fish and Wildlife Service. “Time will tell whether we are successful.”

Meanwhile, people who steal glances of the eagle stand at awe. The eastern end of Belleville Lake is gaining fame for two of its feathered residents.

http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080826/METRO/808260370/1409/METRO

Note: If you look closely at the second picture, the new nesting pole/box is in the center of the woods.  That’s Humbug Island.  Unfortunately, the batteries in my primary camera went out just before I reached the spot.  So, that’s a cell phone camera shot.

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