Thanks to the months-long effort by TECO line crew members, a lucky American bald eagle looking to land a nest can find a safe and spacious one near Bartow, Fla.
The story began in May, when Line Patrolman Jerry Moore discovered a transmission structure that the company would have to replace. And in the nest atop it was a dead eagle – the likely victim of a territorial fight with another bird of prey.
“In our business, our main goal is safety of human life and secondly, it’s to be a good steward over nature,” said Jerry Adams, coordinator of Environmental & Technical Training. “The fact that this was a nest for our national symbol – and would probably be home to a new eagle soon – made it seem even more important.”
Adams contacted Senior Environmental Technician Jamie Woodlee, who started the process to get the permits needed to relocate the nest to a safer, non-energized spot on the same structure.
As the permitting process continued between Tampa Electric, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service, team members faced another challenge: the fact that Tampa Electric’s typical nest platforms support ospreys – smaller birds than the eagle.
“Our operations folks had never relocated an eagle’s nest before, but Tampa Electric has a lot of professional folks that are excellent at what they do,” Adams said.
Finally, in early September, armed with a viable platform and the proper permits, line crew members went to work moving the nest to the platform. With a focus on safety as a thunderstorm rumbled closer, the crews made achievement their urgent goal.
Before the storm struck – and with plenty of time before eagle mating season, which starts Oct. 1 – the nest was in place. The effort earned praise from the U.S. Fish & Wildlife Service as well as the Lake Region Audubon Society.
“Our team members knew the sensitivity of this job and worked hard to get it done,” Adams said. “They gave their best effort to the community and the environment – and there’s an eagle out there that’s going to build a future on it.”
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