Everyone has been anticipating the way to reference the 2012 Decorah eaglets. Though we will have to wait some time for them to arrive, if mom and dad hold true to form, the wait is over for the way to refer to them! The first place will be D for the Decorah, Iowa, nest site. Numbers beginning with 12 will follow the D. Each successive year will continue on from the previous year.

We use nomenclature for the following reasons:

D identifies the nest site – Decorah, Iowa Traditional names can create an undue tendency to anthropomorphize. While the human emotion that may be attached to the eaglets is understandable, an alpha-numeric system for referencing them may help us distance ourselves to observe the wonder of wildlife and nature at work. Beginning at 12 honors the 11 known successful fledges at the nest. This reference system will allow RRP to integrate their findings more easily with other researchers. This will be easily continued from year to year.

For the 2012 nesting season, we will refer to the first egg to hatch as D12. The second will be D13. The third eaglet hatched, if we are so fortunate, will be D14.

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