Eagles' new nest

MOOSEHEART – Two baby eagles tossed from their nest at Mooseheart during Sunday's stormy weather on Tuesday found a new home in a new nest.

Wildlife rehabilitation workers from Barrington-based Flint Creek Wildlife Rehabilitation spent Tuesday afternoon working with personnel from The Care of Trees in Naperville to build a new nest for the eaglets.

The eaglets were not injured after falling an estimated 80 feet into a field abutting Randall Road on the Mooseheart campus. Flint Creek workers recovered them Monday night.

"They weren't happy, but they were OK," said Phil Hampel, one of the directors for Flint Creek, a nonprofit wildlife center.

They were working as quickly as possibly to relocate the eaglets to ensure their parents would visit them in the new nest, which was placed in a tree next to where the old nest was located. The eaglets are only five to six weeks old, and unable to fly on their own. Eagles don't take their first flight until they are 8 to 13 weeks old, Hampel said.

"We have to get the eaglets up in the new nest before the parents leave," Hampel said. "The sooner we get it up there, the better."

However, more stormy weather on Tuesday was putting a crimp in their efforts.

The old nest had broken into pieces upon hitting the ground. But the material from the nest was being placed into a makeshift container in order to form a new nest. Keeping a watchful eye were the parents of the eaglets. They kept flying overhead as the work progressed on rebuilding the nest.

By Tuesday night, the eaglets had been placed in their new nest. Hampel now hopes the parents will care for the eaglets in the new nest.

This was the first time Flint Creek had responded to an eagle nest falling out of a tree.

"We are just starting to see their nests in this area," Hampel said. "As eagles are starting to make a comeback, we are starting to see more nests."

Batavia Moose Lodge member Duane Treest was watching the scene with excitement. He is an eagle enthusiast.

"Where else are you going to see something like this?" Treest said. "I was worried about them last night. They took quite a fall. I was wondering if they could put another nest together for them."

Treest said he regularly sees eagles flying over Clark Island Recreation Area in Batavia. He believes the eagles he sees are the parents of the eaglets born at Mooseheart.

"It is just fun to watch them," Treest said. "They are so majestic. They are our nation's symbol."

This is the third year eagles have appeared at Mooseheart, and the second year eaglets have been born there. Last May, the Kane County Sheriff's Office had to issue a safety advisory because of the large number of people parking on Randall Road to view the eagles.

That stretch of Randall south of Main Street near the Mooseheart property is designated as no parking.

Mooseheart spokesman Darryl Mellema is also hopeful the eaglets find a comfortable home in their new nest.

"If they are anywhere, it is nice they are here," Mellema said. "This area is in a relatively pristine state. There are a variety of plants here you don't see anywhere else in Kane County."