12 eagles spotted in SoCal

Lake Hemet hosts a resident pair of eagles

Saturday was the fourth and last bald eagle count of the 2016-17 season. Volunteers, also known as citizen scientists, and federal and state biologists spotted 12 bald eagles at various Southern California lakes. The nesting adult pair at Lake Hemet was among the dozen eagles seen this weekend.

Seven adults and five subadults or juveniles were observed during the one-hour count period Saturday morning. For the nearly 200 participants, the clear skies and windless morning created perfect conditions for the count. The Lake Hemet contingent included more than a dozen observers.

At Silverwood State Recreation Area, two subadult bald eagles were seen. At Lake Arrowhead, two adult bald eagles and one subadult were seen. But counters observed five eagles at Big Bear Lake, three of whom were adults.

The next eagle count will be in December for the beginning of the 2017-18 eagle census.

The U.S. Forest Service encourages visitors to Garner Valley to stop at the Forest Service’s Lake Hemet Day Use Area and just look across the lake. The eagles are often flying overhead or sitting in the trees above the picnic area.