EAGLE DAYS AT SMITHVILLE LAKE
The 27th annual Eagle Days at Smithville Lake drew large crowds for the indoor raptor show and nature exhibits over the weekend.
Outdoors, sunny days made eagle spotting a pleasant endeavor at the Highway W boat ramp and the lake area.
The event was hosted by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, the Clay County Parks and Recreation Department, and the Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC).
Numerous volunteers also helped as visitors at the Paradise Pointe Golf Course Clubhouse watched a presentation by Operation Wildlife with a captive eagle and other raptors. Nature exhibits were presented by Clay County Parks, Friends of Lakeside Nature Center, the Martha Lafite Thompson Nature Sanctuary, and Wings of Love. The Corps of Engineers said 1,285 visitors attended the indoor presentations.
An eagle viewing area was set up at the Highway W boat ramp. MDC conservation agents and Clay County parks staff helped visitors use spotting scopes. Eagles were spotted north of the boat ramp, sometimes perched in shoreline trees, at other times soaring over the lake. Smithville Lake was mostly iced over but with some open water.
Winter is a good time to watch for bald eagles near lakes, wetlands, and rivers. Large numbers of bald eagles migrate through western Missouri during winter. But the region also has some resident nesting eagles. To learn more about eagles in Missouri, visit https://short.mdc.mo.gov/ZFb. For other organized Eagle Days events throughout the state, and places to view eagles, visit https://short.mdc.mo.gov/Zt6.