Nature lovers and amateur photographers are marveling at the site of an unusual increase in eagles in the skies above South Delta.
People have been flocking to a hot spot near 72nd Street in East Ladner to take in the sight of the birds and snap photos.
Orphaned Wildlife Rehabilitation Society raptor care manager Rob Hope said there are usually quite a few eagles in the area between December and March, but admits there has been a huge increase in recent days.
He said weather most likely played a factor in late 2015 when heavy rains caused water levels to rise, making it difficult for eagles to access their main food source — salmon.
“This year the waters were very high so it was hard for the eagles to get the dead salmon because most of them were washed out of the tributaries and into the Fraser,” said Hope. “Because there is an organic transfer station nearby and the landfill is only a few kilometres away, this has now become a secondary food source for the eagles.”
Hope said with the abundance of organic food scraps at the transfer facility, there are lots of seagulls and ducks in the area and the eagles are preying on those birds for food.
“The eagles are either stealing the food from the seagulls or are just killing them,” he said. “There are probably a lot of rats and mice too, but for the most part, it’s the gulls and the ducks.”
Hope said people should enjoy the eagles while they are in the area, but do it safely.
“The only thing we ask is that people respect private property and stay off the road because the last thing we want is for anyone to be hit or killed when everyone is enjoying this magnificent thing that has been put on a plate right in front of us,” Hope said.
