Jane Emerick
Special to The Chief
Despite swelling rivers and heavy rains, the 2006 Brackendale Winter Eagle Festival's bald eagle count was right on mark.Although national and provincial media reported a sharp decline in eagle numbers this year, organizers of the count said it was close to the usual average.
Brackendale Art Gallery owner and eagle count organizer Thor Froslev had predicted the level and speed of the water would have carried the salmon the eagles feed on down the river, reducing the numbers of the eagles in the area. "With the rain, the river swells and the food source goes," he said.
But rather than reducing the overall numbers, the eagles were just as many, however they were concentrated into different areas than previous years.
The total count was 1,684 birds, which is only slightly below the average of 1,700 birds per season. Of that, 313 birds were counted at the tip of the Squamish River where it meets the Elaho.
Froslev speculated the high number of eagles for this area is probably because it receives less rain and the river is lower, making it a good spot for salmon and the bald eagles.
Froslev said he believed this year to be the highest count ever received for this area.
Froslev praised the work of the volunteer eagle counters. One such counter, Coun. Patricia Heintzman, has been involved with the count for the past 13 years.
Heintzman, who arrived from Ontario at 2:45 a.m. the night before the count, was stationed on a raft counting the eagles in the Baines Island region.
She had counted in the same area for several years and said the count was comparably low because of the high waters spilling over the banks and washing away the dead salmon.
Heintzman marveled at the organization of the count compared to when she first moved to Squamish 13 years ago.
"I did my first count the day after moving to Squamish," she said.
"It was different back then - anyone could do the count - but now it is a lot more organized."Heintzman and other volunteers gathered at around 7:45 a.m. on Sunday to do the count and finish around 3 p.m.
