Victoria, BC - December 1999
By Barbara Ballard
My boots crunched on wet gravel as rain dripped down through the forest of trees. My nostrils were assailed by the pungent smell of thousands of rotting fish, their carcasses cluttering the banks of Goldstream River. Gulls screeched as they danced in the river atop eyeless salmon. The hapless fish, having spent their last breath swimming upstream and spawning, were now providing a banquet for the birds.
The salmons' journey began four years ago when they left this river, situated in a temperate rain forest on Vancouver Island, for the Pacific Ocean. Coming home to continue the generations, they swim upstream and die, exhausted, after laying their eggs.
I followed the path that runs beside the river for 15 minutes of easy walking to the river's estuary. My goal was to spot eagles, not gulls. In December and January, up to 276 (at last count) eagles arrive from their scattered habitats in the Pacific Northwest to gorge on the dead salmon. Low tide is the time to watch these magnificent birds swooping down to the river's mudflats to grab their daily dose of high protein.
A few years ago there were no eagles here. Then the Goldstream River estuary was closed to people to create a quiet sanctuary for the birds and other wildlife. Now the eagles can feast undisturbed.
There's a viewing platform and a Visitor Centre nearby. Looking through a telescope and a pair of binoculars, I spotted eagles clustered on bare tree branches, their white heads silhouetted against the dark gray sky. It would be handy to have eagle eyes - the equivalent of a powerful zoom camera lens. A pair had made a nest in a nearby tree. Mating couples use the nests year after year, and the twigs and sticks can accumulate to a weight of two tons with the nests being 10 feet across and 20 feet deep.
In the Visitor Centre I watched a live video camera trained on the eagles. Appetites satisfied, the birds continued to provide a fascinating show, majestically winging through the air. It was hard to turn my eyes away, but I wanted to see what else the Visitor Centre offered. There was a slide show explaining the Bald Eagle's life history as well as exhibits on birds of prey.
The park naturalist explained that female eagles are 10-15% larger than the males. They can be as large as 88 inches across and 30 inches tall. The big birds weigh 8 to 10 pounds and when their talons grab onto a fish, they lock into place. If the fish is too heavy to carry through the air, they must eat until its weight is reduced. If caught by the waters, they can swim using their wings.
Returning through the splendor of the rain forest, I stopped to watch the last of the salmon run struggling upstream and wondered what primitive instinct drove the species to return year after year to die. I knew what drove the eagles to return to Goldstream River's estuary. A free banquet awaited.
Essential Information
Goldstream Provincial Park is located 17 kilometres northwest of downtown Victoria, BC, Canada on Vancouver Island. Year round nature programs and displays. Many hiking trails and a campground are located in the park. A car is necessary to reach the park, or you may book a tour with one of the following companies, both of which provide transportation to and from the site and the services of a naturalist.
Pride of Victoria Cruises and Tours
$30 per person.
Phone: 250-592-3474.
Email: cruises@oakbaybeachhotel.bc.ca
Nature Calls Eco-Tours
$35 per person.
Phone: 250-361-4453 or 1-877-361-4453.
Email: ecotours@home.net
Goldstream Provincial Park Visitor Centre
Exhibits, books on eagles, coffee available. Park in main parking lot off the Island Highway at Finlayson Arm Road.
For program presentations and information,
call 250-478-9414
Open 9am to 4:30pm daily
©1999 Barbara Ballard. Reproduction of this work in whole or in part, including images, and reproduction in electronic media, without documented permission from the author is prohibited.
Image credits:
Eagles in trees courtesy Paul Rudan.
Other photos By Barbara Ballard
Questions?
If you want more information about this area you can email the author or check out our North America Insiders page.
