Tropical Audubon Society

South Florida’s Voice of Conservation

Kate:

I've never seen a Golden Eagle in Florida, so I would very much like to know where in the Everglades you saw this bird. Were you able to obtain any photos of the bird?

Thanks,

Brian Rapoza
Field Trip Coordinator
Tropical Audubon Society

That is a rare bird in Florida, details would be nice to know. The Everglades sure are large, it would be nice to know more details.

There have only been a couple of documented sightings of Golden Eagle in Florida, and all juveniles. Just FYI.

I'm pretty sure I spotted a juvenile Golden Eagle this morning in Bradfordville Florida. Thought initially it was a bald eagle but the coloration was different in that there was more of a brownish gold tint.

12:35 pm Sunday February 2 I am pretty sure I just spotted a golden eagle near highway 41 and Del Prado Boulevard in North Fort Myers Florida. It was about 200 ft above me so I got a pretty good look. I lived in the Allagash in Maine and I have seen them frequently there. I was quite taken aback really. You can’t mistake that wingspan. I feel pretty lucky and I just bought a powerball ticket!🤣

Think we may have seen two golden eagles near the pond/lake at Cinnamon Cove. I got a picture but only from my phone so not very clear. We saw one fly in and land in a tree the other was already in another tree. It had a huge wingspan and the coloring under the wings was fairly mottled. Also saw a bald eagle that is known to be in the same area chasing a much larger bird which may have been a golden eagle. Thoughts?

I just saw one in the Everglades on 8st or 41 on sitting on top of the bridge on the way to shark Valley

Hybrid Eagle Spotted: Broward County - Plantation, Florida in June 1997 (SR-595 and University Dr)

Maybe in June because it was warm out but in south Florida, it’s pretty much warm most of the time. So cant really pinpoint the month since it was so long ago.

I was in High School it was a Saturday and my whole family was out doing stuff and I was the only one home, I had woken up at approximately 11:30am.

About a week ago my parents bought two very small Siamese kittens and both were left on the pool patio that's at the back of the house.

I was in the kitchen and noticed the two kittens on the patio were very close together and were making a strange chattering noise and looking up at something.

I went out on the patio to see what they were looking at and was amazed to see this huge – at least 30” tall bird that was the shape of a Bald Eagle but was Not a Bald Eagle. This bird was on the next door neighbors roof looking down at my two kittens at maybe 35 feet away.

So now I’m looking at this bird for at least 15 minutes and I said to myself: “Take a good look because I’ll probably never see this huge beautiful thing again and it’s very unique in it’s appearance”. So I just took my time and analyzed this bird as much as I could.

Many times I have looked on the internet to see and example of what I saw and to this day I can’t find an exact match – BUT I have found something very very close. It seems to be a mix between a Golden Eagle and a White Tailed Eagle. Leaning more toward a White Tailed Eagle

What I saw:
-Extremely bright yellow beak and legs (no black at all on either the beak or legs)

-The color was a medium brown with white highlight tips on each feather – I remember saying to myself on how detailed each feather was with those white highlights. It reminded me of Tropical Fish in the Ocean and how they look like they are painted with the colors.

-The beak was exactly like a Bald Eagles beak as far as size and shape, seemed very big and a very deep but bright yellow and flawless.

-This is the only picture I can find on the internet that comes close to what I saw: www.picfair.com/pics/07979134-white-tailed-eagle

-I was able to look at this bird for about 15 minutes and when I turned away for a second, it flew away and wasn't able to see it in the air.

Thanks for reading 6/11/2020

6/25/2020; approx. 1pm on 721 heading toward Brighton Casino just before the entrance to Reservation Rd. It was just sitting on a fence post grooming itself in the shade of some palm trees. I could clearly see the different shades of brown and gold feathers along the head and body. I was surprised since I’ve helped several students with research on Florida birds and know they aren’t native to Florida.

Was fishing in Everglades National Park in middle cape canal for shark. I was using a large Jack as bait. While we were watching for a shark to bite a Golden Eagle swooped down and grabbed out of the water the 5lb Jack and proceeded to take it over to the trees. He dropped it and left our Jack hanging thirty feet up in the air on a tree branch. The wingspan had to be atlas 6ft It was massive, all brown, and very strong.

100 percent certain Golden Eagle sighting Dec. 25, 2020. Blue Cypress Lake Water Management area on the levee road west of the parking lot. Juvenile eagle perched and flying overhead within 100 to 150 feet for a 15 minute period. For those who have never seen a golden eagle in the wild, "the bird looks nothing like a Bald Eagle.
Especially while flying directly overhead".

I am so certain that I have seen this bird that if anyone ever wants to join me on our daily airboats you can at no cost...just need to know in advance...would love to have this officially documented.