Oaks Theater to host discovery session on bald and golden eagles

Wishful Wednesday Productions will present an evening of live music, local eagle photography and a discussion on the presence and differences between bald and golden eagles in Pennsylvania on Wednesday at the Oaks Theater, starting at 6 p.m. in Oakmont.

The featured guest lecturer Chris Kubiak, education director for the Audubon Society of Western Pennsylvania, will bring a live red-shouldered hawk for his discussion on the bald and golden eagles.

Doors open at 6 p.m. for a meet and greet, followed by a 7 p.m. live music hour featuring the acoustic guitars of Rusty Liberatore and John Maione providing a musical backdrop to photographs of eagles throughout the state displayed on a large screen. Tickets are $15 to $20. For more information, visit the following web page.

While residents are accustomed to seeing or at least hearing about bald eagles that are nesting residents, golden eagles do pass through the state primarily in November through January, with the closest location to see one in the Laurel Highlands, Kubiak said.

Sometimes, and in some places, both birds can be found.

“In the Pittsburgh area, golden eagles are rare but possible,” he said. “When you see bald eagles and golden eagles together is when they are scavenging on a carcass.”

They are similar in size, standing about 2.6 feet tall with 6.5-foot wingspans.

But they are different birds that are not closely related at all, Kubiak said.

The big difference is what they hunt for prey. Fish make up the biggest part of the bald eagle’s diet, while golden eagles pursue mostly rabbits, hares and small mammals.

They look different as well, if you know what to look for, especially when comparing the young raptors. It takes four to five years for both varieties of eagle to acquire their adult plumage but, while they are younger, there are nuances to look for.