About the Eagles
Eagles from this area generally head north towards northern BC and Alaska when the nesting season ends in mid-August. They stay a while around the northern coast and rivers where the salmon begin to spawn first, then as soon as the spawning occurs farther south the eagles will follow those fish so they can feed off them. Eagles typically arrive back in the Harrison Mills area sometime around late September or early October. The Harrison Mills area, where this nest is located, is noted for its abundance of spawning fish from late October into December - and what is so breathtaking is that thousands of eagles from all over have been seen during this time, and they usually stay around until the fish are gone; they will then move on to their own territories and nesting areas.
Mr and Mrs Honeycomb, the original pair that we watched from early 2013 through 2017, followed that pattern, generally leaving in mid-August and returning in early October.
David Hancock's 2013 article about the history of the Harrison Mills nest - and the history of Mrs Honeycomb -
viewtopic.php?p=609367#p609367.
Mr Honeycomb was last seen in mid-June 2017; local observers reported seeing two eagles fighting around that time, and we suspect he may have lost the fight and left. Mrs Honeycomb successfully raised their two chicks, and she and the two chicks left the area in mid-August.
Two adults were seen in the area in late September of 2017, and Mrs Honeycomb returned to the nest on October 3rd; a new male began spending time with her soon afterwards (though we didn't see him come to the nest until March 2018), and they produced one egg. The new male shared in the incubation and helped brood and feed the tiny chick when it hatched on May 21. Those of us watching suspected he was not a first time dad - he seemed reasonably comfortable incubating, and while it took a few tries to connect, was able to get food to the chick the first time he tried. Sadly the tiny chick died during the night of May 28-29 for no apparent reason - possibly some internal defect or maybe a food item that was contaminated (he was fed frog the day before he died). Mrs Honeycomb consumed the remains on May 30. Both adults were on the nest May 31st - the male brought Mrs Honeycomb a huge frog, which she ate. And that was the last time we saw Mrs Honeycomb.
Her mate remained in the area and continued to work on the nest, and after a couple of weeks he brought a new partner to the nest. This new female was definitely an adult, but had a few dark feathers still visible on her head and tail, so we suspect she was 5 or 6 when she arrived in mid-June 2018, and had not nested before. They worked on the nest and the male courted her by bringing food. There were no visits to the nest from August 13 through September 19, 2018. The pair returned on September 20 and began working on the nest; they were given the names of Duffer and Dimple, or Mr and Mrs D for short, later that fall.
For the next three years (2019, 2020, and 2021), Duffer and Dimple returned in September, worked on their nest, mated, and generally acted like a bonded pair of eagles that planned to raise chicks - but did not produce any eggs. We think they took a break away from the area for part of August and September, although the cam was down part of the time at least one year, so we can't be positive how long they were away.
While eagles are generally old enough to produce fertile eggs and raise a family by the time they are five years old (which Dimple was when she first appeared in 2018), some eagles take a little longer. And while some new pairs raise chicks their first season together, others take a year or more to get in sync. And in 2022, Dimple laid her first egg the evening of April 10. Those of us who watch them were ecstatic! And then we wondered why Duffer, who had been a helpful mate to Mrs Honeycomb in their year together, did not come to the nest to help with incubation. The morning of April 12, Duffer landed on the nest briefly then went to a perch, and the zoomer followed him and found that he had apparently been injured, probably in a territorial battle for the nest. There appeared to be a lot of blood on the side of his head and neck, but no long term physical damage that we could see. From the actions of the eagles, we suspect the intruder was in the area for a few more days before giving up and moving on. Duffer successfully protected his territory - but unfortunately this intrusion appeared to disrupt his instinct to incubate. Dimple did a fantastic job caring for the eggs, but she also had to take care of herself, so the eggs were left alone at times, occasionally for several hours - and not surprisingly, they didn't hatch.
We were hoping for a better year in 2023 - but unfortunately the remaining cam stopped streaming on March 14, close to the time they would normally lay eggs. One of our members was able to visit the site on May 17, and said they didn't appear to be using the nest. They had appeared to be interested in the nest before the cam went offline - but unfortunately there's no way to know what happened.
We are hoping they will be back this year, and our new cams will let us see if they do finally raise a family.
