The Bald Eagle, a NJ endangered species, is a recent fall-winter visitor to Mordecai Island. The adult eagle has dark feathering and a distinctive white head and tail. Juveniles undergo changes to their plumage until they reach maturity in their fifth year. The females are larger than than the males. Eagle pairs will mate for life and together they build large, deep and heavy nests that are made of tree limbs and grassy materials in high strong trees near the water. In NJ, their eggs are laid in mid January.

An eagle was first seen scouting Mordecai Island in the fall of 2019, where it was observed utilizing the abandoned Osprey platform to perch and feed. Eagles primarily eat fish, but they will also eat anything that is available in the area, such as mammals or avian species. In the fall of 2020, the eagle was seen again, soaring the Mordecai skies, which this time attracted a potential mate. When the two eagles were observed courting, feeding and perching on the Osprey platform, a monitoring project was established in partnership with NJFW and the Little Egg Foundation.

Click below to read about the remote eagle nest monitoring project that was conducted on Mordecai Island in January 2021, by our project partners, NJFW and the Little Egg Foundation:

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The IRS has determined that the Mordecai Land Trust is tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986 (“Code”) and not a private foundation pursuant to sections 509(a)(1) and 170(b)(1)(A)(vi) of the Code. Mordecai Land Trust was established in 2001.

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