The baby bald eagle that hatched close to an exit ramp off E-470 in Commerce City spread her wings and flew for the first time Monday morning.
According to scenes captured by E-470 security cameras as well as a loyal “Eagle Bridgade” volunteer who was watching from the shoulder of 120th Avenue, the eagle fledged to the east — away from the highway — and then faltered and landed in some tall grass nearby.
“We have her on the ground, and she’s certainly safe,” said Peter Reshetniak, director of the Brighton Raptor Education Foundation. “Now we have to wait for her to get back up into the tree.”
VIDEO: Watch the eaglet take its first flight
Reshetniak said the eaglet won’t get back into the nest because it’s too much of a flight, but she many stay on the ground until her parents show up to feed her later Monday. He said he received a text message from the volunteer who was tasked to guard the nest around 8 a.m. saying that the baby eagle tipped herself out of the nest and onto the ground.
The volunteer “was watching her in the nest, and she just sort of leaned over and fell out,” Reshetniak said. “She spread her wings and everything, but it wasn’t a volitional, wings-open soar. It was much less graceful.”
When he arrived on scene, Reshetniak got about 20 feet away from the eaglet to make sure she didn’t hurt herself. He said she is healthy and stable and will remain in the grass until she flies again.
While the bird is on the ground, Reshetniak said it’s important that people keep their distance from her. That may be difficult because the bird has garnered a following of guardians who have been watching her progress night and day for nearly three weeks.
The eaglet’s perilous nest location originally drew interest from more than 50 bird enthusiasts who wanted to guard her from falling onto the highway.
Reshetniak originally guessed that she would fly sometime between July 3 and 6, but said without knowing when the eaglet hatched, it was difficult to know for sure.
“The landing was OK,” said Dan Christopherson, spokesperson for the E-470 Public Highway Authority. “She flew away from the toll road, which is exactly what we hoped for.”
E-470 put up temporary signage to alert people about the eagle’s nest while the baby bird was in it. They also devoted extra surveillance and Colorado State Patrol personnel to the area since the beginning of the month. The video of the eaglet out of her nest is on the foundation’s Facebook page.
