Eagle Days continue to take flight

A World Bird Sanctuary handler shows off a golden eagle, native to the American West, during Saturday's Eagle Days program at Osage National Golf Resort.
A World Bird Sanctuary handler shows off a golden eagle, native to the American West, during Saturday's Eagle Days program at Osage National Golf Resort.

This weekend is all about the birds at the Lake of the Ozarks, as Eagle Days 2014 wings through the Lake Area. The festivities started Saturday morning and will continue until 4:30 p.m. today, weather permitting.

In its fifth year as a stand-alone event, Eagle Days has attracted visitors to see and learn about not only the eagles that give the program its name but also other large birds of prey.

Eagle Days offers opportunities for wild eagle viewing at Lake Ozark's Willmore Lodge and Bagnell Dam access. Missouri Master Naturalist volunteers are on hand at each location to help guests use the scopes provided by the Lake of the Ozarks Astronomy club to spot eagles from afar. Even before noon on Saturday, Master Naturalists at the Bagnell Dam access had helped more than 200 guests spot eagles across the Osage River. Guests can also learn how eagle nests are made, as well as take a rope-making lesson from a group of Boy Scouts.

Eagles are the focus of the World Bird Sanctuary's program at Osage National Golf Resort, offered at the beginning of every hour, with the final program at 2 p.m. Handlers teach guests about bald, golden and bateleur eagles, as well as ravens, with a live example of each species to show off.

Other birds of prey steal the show at the Country Club Hotel, where Dickerson Park Zoo offers the alternating programs "Live Owls of Missouri" and "Day Shift, Night Shift and Garbage Gal," which features owls, hawks and turkey vultures. Programs are offered hourly beginning at 10:30 a.m., with the final program at 3:30 p.m.

Lake of the Ozarks Eagle Days 2014 is a collective partnership between the Lake of the Ozarks Convention and Visitor Bureau, Missouri Master Naturalist Lake of the Ozarks Chapter, Lake Area Chamber of Commerce, LakeoftheOzarksRadio.com, Country Club Hotel & Spa and Osage National Golf Resort.