Eagle Pair Story Plot Thickens

Many of you read a couple of weeks ago that we spotted a pair of eagles nearby and they appeared to be an adult and a younger eagle. The first photo here might look familiar as I published it at the time. This photo was used to confirm that this eagle is likely a bird born in Amesbury in 2015; identified as MM by Division of Fisheries and Wildlife (MassWildlife). Thanks to the input and efforts from Darlene (of Salem NH) and Laura (fellow eagle lover), I have put together my theory about this pair. It’s only a theory and we may never know for sure, but it’s my story and I’m sticking to it.

You see here also photos of MM as an eaglet in Amesbury with its parents as well as a photo of newly banded MM flying off presumably from the Amesbury area. These photos are provided by Darlene–thanks a bunch! I think MM is one of the pair of adults we were watching last year in the Gloucester area. We believe one of the adults likely died and MM has now paired up with this younger eagle. I believe it’s a little unusual for this to happen, but not unheard of. We spotted this pair flying into a local nest yesterday and (from a long distance) they seemed to be eating and communicating. It’s been reported that there’s a third eagle in the area also but I haven’t found the 3 together yet. Stay tuned. I hope you will agree it’s an exciting story. Further details and additional photos can be found at Pat D’s Photos and Adventures on Facebook.

To anticipate the comments to follow, allow me to add that these photos are cropped as they were taken from quite a distance. I won’t be any more specific about location in an effort to protect the birds except to say this is in the Gloucester area.