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Map Satellite Long a favorite breeding ground of the osprey, Pandion haliaetus, this portion of the Lassen National Forest is now managed as an osprey nesting area. Past fluctuations in the water level of the lake resulted in a number of dead trees which provide nesting sites; this, coupled with the easily available fish in Eagle Lake, have led to an unusually high concentration of ospreys. Their food here is primarily tui chub, Gila bicolor, followed by Eagle Lake trout, Salmo gairdneri aquilarum (see Eagle Lake), and Tahoe suckers, Catostomus tahoensis.
Vegetation in this area includes Sierra juniper, Juniperus occidentalis, Jeffrey pine, Pinus jeffreyi, and common sagebrush, Artemisia tridentata.
Integrity: The area has been logged and grazed and flooded. Now managed to protect the ospreys, the Forest Service has topped trees and installed poles with nesting platforms to increase the number of nesting sites. In 1972 the ospreys preferred the poles to the old nesting sites by a four to one ratio.
Use: Observation, research. Access limited during breeding season, April 1 to September 15.
Ref: Kahl, J. R., 1971. Osprey Habitat Management Plan. Unpublished report. Lassen National Forest, Susanville, California.
Ray, M. S., 1915. Nesting of the American Osprey at Eagle Lake, California. Condor 17, p. 70-74.
May 1975
Inventory of California Natural Areas
Revision © 2009 Steven Louis Hartman
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