As bald eagles reestablish their population, they help protect island foxes by reducing the probability that golden eagles will colonize the islands. Bald eagles primarily prey on fish and seabirds, while the golden eagles prey specifically on mammals. In the late 1990s, golden eagles nearly caused the extinction of the island fox on three islands: San Miguel, Santa Rosa and Santa Cruz.
Milestone bald eagle birth in 2013.
A landmark this year was the return of bald eagles to San Clemente Island. It is believed this is the first time bald eagles have attempted to nest on this southern island in approximately 50 years. The U.S. Navy manages San Clemente Island and they have been successful in protecting island foxes and other island endemic species. The bald eagles are evidence of recovering habitat on the windswept island.
The newly established pair was unsuccessful in nesting in 2014, but hopes are high that the pair will find success in the future.
According to the National Park Service the pair of bald eagles combine the successes found on the other Channel Islands. The female was hatched near Juneau, Alaska, in 2004. She was relocated as a juvenile to Santa Cruz Island as part of the efforts to reestablish bald eagles on the National Park islands.
The male eagle is a young adult, hatched in 2007. He began life in an incubator on Santa Catalina Island and was placed in a bald eagle nest on the island, where he was raised by foster eagle parents.
See Current Island Fox Recovery, island by island.