Birds-eye view
<p>A bald eagle, still not fully matured, plucks a fish from Lake Coeur d’Alene Wednesday near Higgens Point.</p>
<p> With his camera set-up at the ready, Post Falls resident Larry Krumpelman, a wildlife photography enthusiast for some 50 years, keeps an eye on a bald eagle during a trip to Higgens Point.</p>
COEUR d'ALENE — Dave Sizemore had sized up a bald eagle perched in a pine tree on the east end of Lake Coeur d'Alene on Thursday morning for 45 minutes when his Canon moment took flight.
"It doesn't get any better than this," the Coeur d'Alene photographer said quietly as he snapped away at the eagle eying the water in search of a kokanee salmon for breakfast.
"I've been coming out here for 15 years and they never cease to amaze me. This is our American icon in action."
After two years of sub-par numbers on Lake Coeur d'Alene, the eagles have returned in force, according to the Bureau of Land Management, which tracks eagle numbers on a weekly basis.
The agency counted 126 of the birds on Thursday compared to just 34 last year at this time and 86 in 2013.
"The numbers have tripled (over last year)," said Suzanne Endsley, BLM public affairs officer. "It's likely this means the kokanee are abundant and of course with our mild weather, the lake edges are not frozen so the fishing (for the eagles) is good."
The eagle season on Lake Coeur d'Alene and Lake Pend Oreille generally runs from mid-November to early February, with numbers peaking around Christmas.
The peak count last year on Lake Coeur d'Alene was 140, in 2013 it was 217 and in 2012 it was 260.
Endsley said an arctic front caused a portion of the east side of the lake where kokanee spawn to be frozen last year, making fish less accessible, and that may have contributed to the lower-than-usual numbers.
"They also left sooner than usual last year," she said.
The comeback of kokanee on Lake Pend Oreille in recent years may also be impacting the numbers on Coeur d'Alene.
"Flying from Canada, they can stop there first, then come to Coeur d'Alene," Endsley said.
Eagle watching on Coeur d'Alene has been impressive this year, however.
"Seven were seen in one tree during the veterans eagle watch cruise this past Saturday," Endsley said. "They're more on track to what we normally see."
Endsley said while eagles can be viewed on both Coeur d'Alene and Pend Oreille at Bayview, there's more public access on Coeur d'Alene. The BLM and Fish and Game will host their 25th annual Eagle Watch Week on Coeur d'Alene Dec. 27-31 from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day along Highway 97 at Mineral Ridge.
Eagle watchers are urged to use extreme caution on the roadways because drivers and pedestrians can easily become distracted while viewing the majestic birds. Watchers should use only designated parking areas.
Larry Krumpelman of Post Falls has been taking photos of eagles for about 25 years and goes out nearly every day, except when it rains.
In between watching eagles flying over the lake, he practices on sea gulls, ducks and other birds. One year, he captured a beaver in action.
"I'm retired, but my wife says I have a job because I could spend seven or eight hours a day doing it," he said. "I have friends who chase around after the eagles, but I'm content just waiting for them to come down. And they do."