First Time In Over 100 Years: Baby Bald Eagle Born In Chicago

When you think of bald eagles, Illinois is more than likely not the first place that comes to mind.

Alaska? Sure. The Pacific Northwest? Absolutely. But Illinois? As it turns out, the Land of Lincoln has quietly become one of America’s best bald eagle states, and now, Chicago itself has made eagle history.

For the first time in more than 100 years, a baby bald eagle has been born within Chicago city limits. The eaglet hatched on April 28 in a nest near the Calumet River on the city’s Southeast Side, according to the Chicago Park District. Wildlife officials say there have been previous nesting attempts over the decades, but this is the first successful documented birth of an eaglet in Chicago in over a century.

The nest is located in a habitat corridor near Hegewisch and South Deering, where years of restoration work helped create an environment attractive to wildlife. Native plants were added, invasive species removed, and the area slowly transformed into a place where a couple of America’s national birds decided to settle down and start a family.

Illinois Has Way More Bald Eagles Than You May Have Thought

The thing that many Illinoisans don’t realize is that Illinois is actually one of the top states in America for wintering bald eagles.

Every winter, roughly 3,000 bald eagles gather along the Mississippi, Illinois, and Rock Rivers because our waterways often stay partially unfrozen and full of fish. In fact, wildlife experts say Illinois has the largest winter population of bald eagles in the lower 48 states.

Bald eagles themselves are massive birds. Adults can have wingspans reaching 7 feet, and their nests (called aeries) are even more impressive. Eagles reuse and add to their nests year after year, and some become gigantic over time.

The average eagle nest can measure several feet across, but the largest bald eagle nest ever recorded was over 20 feet deep, nearly 10 feet wide, and weighed several tons. That makes an eagle’s aerie one of the largest tree nests built by any animal in the entire world.