Wanderlust World Wanderlust World Be aware that it is possible—in some circumstances easy—to confuse the bald eagle with the osprey, a similar bird that lives by fishing. Both have dark bodies, and in each case the top of the head is white. The osprey, however, has a distinctive dark eyestripe that covers both eyes like a mask, and has a white breast that the bald eagle lacks.
Understand, also, that seeing a bald eagle is rarely easy in Yellowstone (osprey are much more plentiful—indeed, anyone who visits Yellowstone for more than a day or two is likely to see an osprey). Bald eagles nest in various places around the park, but there are not enough of them to make spotting one a simple task.
Try Yellowstone Lake, the big body of water in the middle of Yellowstone National Park. Although you will need luck to see one, bald eagles do nest here and feed on fish from the lake.
Visit the one place where you can usually see bald eagles. Recently, eagles built a nest in a dead tree on the west entrance road—the road, that is, from Madison Junction to the town of West Yellowstone, Montana. The nest is close to the bridge across the Madison River at the seven mile point (in either direction).
If you go looking for the nest, look for cars and people with binoculars; the traffic jams alone will usually tell you where to stop. Always park well off the road, so that the traffic does not get any worse, and far from the nest; the road in the immediate area of the nest is restricted, to give the birds a break. The nest itself is huge, and the birds, if they are around, are hard to miss. You may also see an eaglet poking its head out of the nest.