National Eagle Center

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National Eagle Center Your eagle experience awaits in the "Eagle Capital of America", Wabasha, MN! We are home to four permanently injured Bald Eagles and one Red-Tailed Hawk.
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The National Eagle Center is the world's premier resource for impactful eagle education and experiences. Our facility offers daily programs and two floors of interactive exhibits covering eagle biololgy and behavior, the environment, and eagles in art, history, and cultures. Our Winter Eagle Viewing Field Trips and Habitat Tours are available during the winter season. For details, please visit nationaleaglecenter.org/experiences.

🦅 EAGLE 101: STAYING HYDRATED 🦅We are often reminded about the importance of staying properly hydrated. Just like us, ea...
10/15/2026

🦅 EAGLE 101: STAYING HYDRATED 🦅

We are often reminded about the importance of staying properly hydrated. Just like us, eagles and other animals need to stay hydrated as well. How they manage to do so does vary, and today we look at some differences.

Bald Eagles are classified as "sea" eagles and considered water birds. Abundant water is part of their ideal habitat. They get plenty of water in their diet from eating fresh prey like fish or other small critters (the fluids contained in the animal). However, they don't always eat fresh; they are also scavengers. Thus, it is not uncommon for Bald Eagles to drink directly from a river, lake, or stream.

🦅🇺🇸 COLLECTION WEDNESDAY: MARIO FERNANDEZ COLLECTOR EAGLE PLATE 🇺🇸🦅Paintings aren't limited to just canvas, and the Amer...
10/14/2026

🦅🇺🇸 COLLECTION WEDNESDAY: MARIO FERNANDEZ COLLECTOR EAGLE PLATE 🇺🇸🦅

Paintings aren't limited to just canvas, and the American Eagle Collection contained many examples of art on unique media. Here is a beautiful piece created by Cuban-born, Minnesota resident Mario F. Fernandez in partnership with the Fingerhut Corporation. It's a limited edition collectors plate from 1993.

The astounding artwork of the soaring Bald Eagle makes it a perfect display piece to liven up any living room, dining room or gallery, especially because the paint made the plate unusable. Warnings were even included, noting the food may be poisoned if it was used as a dinner plate. Mr. Fernandez passed away in 2012.

🦅 EAGLE 101: NO MATTER THE SEASON, BALD EAGLES ARE ALWAYS FASHIONABLE 🦅 Aaaaaah, autumn and migration season. There is s...
10/13/2026

🦅 EAGLE 101: NO MATTER THE SEASON, BALD EAGLES ARE ALWAYS FASHIONABLE 🦅

Aaaaaah, autumn and migration season. There is so much to see and observe! For birders of all skill levels, it is a bonanza. But if you are a novice birder, the fall can be an especially confounding time because so many of the songbirds you are used to are molting and taking on non-breeding plumage for the winter. They have to dress appropriately for the season! But not Bald Eagles.

No, Bald Eagles don't change their feathers for anything, even though their molting is continuous throughout the year. Once they reach adulthood, it's a white head and tail for life. In fact, aside from different morphs (plumage colorations from among individual species), most raptors keep the same adult coloration throughout their adult lives.

Occasionally we do get questions asking why Bald Eagles are colored the way they are. We don't have an answer for that, but we do know through observation that in higher latitudes where there is snow in the winter, Bald Eagles' brown and white coloring does help them blend into the snow-covered canopy. Perhaps it is to help them remain camouflaged while hunting. No matter the answer, Bald Eagles never go out of fashion. That white head and tail look is always in season!

🦅 WISHING EVERYONE A HAPPY INDIGENOUS PEOPLES' DAY 🦅Today is Indigenous Peoples' Day and here at the National Eagle Cent...
10/12/2026

🦅 WISHING EVERYONE A HAPPY INDIGENOUS PEOPLES' DAY 🦅

Today is Indigenous Peoples' Day and here at the National Eagle Center we always acknowledge the rich history and traditions of the Dakota People who called, and still call, Wabasha home. Wabasha is a place for humans and eagles alike, and we are honored and privileged to be the caretakers for the Eagle Ambassadors as they hold a deep spiritual bond between the Dakota and many other Indigenous peoples of North America and around the world.

Here we see a photo of Ambassador Angel perched in front the Chief Wapahasha II statue that stands proudly on the riverfront of downtown Wabasha right outside the National Eagle Center. We wish everyone a beautiful and peaceful day! 🦅🙂✌❤

🦅😃 ENJOY A FUN AND EDUCATIONAL MEA WEEKEND DAY TRIP! 😃🦅Calling all Minnesota families - MEA Weekend is next Thursday and...
10/10/2026

🦅😃 ENJOY A FUN AND EDUCATIONAL MEA WEEKEND DAY TRIP! 😃🦅

Calling all Minnesota families - MEA Weekend is next Thursday and Friday, Oct 15-16! Looking for some fun activities for the kids? Plan a visit to the National Eagle Center! We'll be open from 10am-4pm all weekend so you can meet the Eagle Ambassadors, attend a classroom live eagle program, explore the interactive exhibits, and even go Behind the Scenes! There is plenty to enjoy, so mark your calendar and set course for Wabasha! 🦅😁🍁😎👍👍

🦅🪹 EAGLE 101: NEST RANGE 🪹🦅Yesterday, while looking out over the Mississippi River from the National Eagle Center observ...
10/09/2026

🦅🪹 EAGLE 101: NEST RANGE 🪹🦅

Yesterday, while looking out over the Mississippi River from the National Eagle Center observation platform, a guest asked, "How far will an eagle carry a stick back to a nest?" It was a seasonally appropriate question as we have been discussing the "false nesting trigger" eagles receive during the shortening days of autumn, and we happily provided an answer.

While adult Bald Eagle generally stay near their primary nesting territory even outside of nesting season, they can range about when they are not actively raising young in the nest. However, during periods of nest activity (whether during actual nesting season or false trigger photoperiod), Bald Eagles typically maintain a defensible perimeter of up to a mile radius around the nest. This can vary, especially in areas of higher population density where that radius is likely going to be less. The point is, however, that Bald Eagles aren't generally going to carry nest materials over great distances. Those materials are collected from within the nest territory itself which is large for the size of the bird, but geographically fairly localized. Photo by Andrea Johnson. 🦅🪹🌳🌲🪾😃👍

🦅🍁 A CRESCENDO OF COLORS 🍁🦅It's a bit paradoxical that the summer months when the weather is the nicest is the season w...
10/09/2026

🦅🍁 A CRESCENDO OF COLORS 🍁🦅

It's a bit paradoxical that the summer months when the weather is the nicest is the season when Bald Eagles are the hardest to see, and that winter, with its cold and unpredictable weather, is peak eagle viewing season. Be that as it may, autumn provides a colorful crescendo before the trees drop their leaves and everything in the canopy - the eagles and the nests - is revealed for the whole world to see. Now is the time for the colors, so take advantage and drive along the The Great River Road during October! Photo by Nancy Nygaard. 🦅🍁🍂😯😍👍

🦅EAGLE 101: DISTINGUISHING IMMATURE BALD EAGLES FROM GOLDEN EAGLES 🦅We've been talking about migration recently and toda...
10/08/2026

🦅EAGLE 101: DISTINGUISHING IMMATURE BALD EAGLES FROM GOLDEN EAGLES 🦅

We've been talking about migration recently and today we'll get a jump on what is always a popular question - am I seeing a Golden Eagle? Golden Eagle season is drawing closer in Minnesota and Wisconsin (think November). In the meantime, here is a review of the field marks and behaviors to keep in mind if you are curious as to whether you are seeing an immature Bald Eagle or a Golden Eagle.

- Is it near a large body of water? Bald Eagles are water birds while Goldens typically are found in bluff and woodland areas. They feed on different prey.

- In flight, does it look almost headless? If "yes", you may be looking at a Golden. Their heads are much less prominent than Balds, and their beaks are also much smaller in proportion to their heads. If the head and beak are small, the chances of it being Golden are higher.

- Is the beak all dark? If "yes", then are likely looking at a Bald Eagle. Their beaks start out entirely dark and gradually change to yellow. Golden Eagles always have tri-colored beaks (dark at the tip blueish-grey in the middle and yellow at the base).

- Where is the white? If the eagle you are observing has no white at all, you've likely got an adult Golden. Juvenile Goldens have a white tail band and white spots near their wingtips, but adults are all brown. Meanwhile, juvenile Bald Eagles can have white all over, specifically in the wingpits where the wings meet the body.

- How is it soaring? If the wings are held flat like a plank, you've got a Bald Eagle. If the wings are held in a slight "V" shape (a dihedral), you've likely got a Golden Eagle.
Keep these pointers in mind and HAPPY VIEWING!! 🦅😃😍👍👍

🦅⛑️ REMINDER: FIRST RESPONDER CONNECTION DAY THIS SUNDAY, OCT 11 ⛑️🦅A friendly reminder that first responders are invite...
10/08/2026

🦅⛑️ REMINDER: FIRST RESPONDER CONNECTION DAY THIS SUNDAY, OCT 11 ⛑️🦅

A friendly reminder that first responders are invited to enjoy complimentary admission to visit the Eagle Ambassadors this Sunday, Oct. 11! We appreciate the service these men and women provide to our communities to make them safe and secure. Have a first responder among your friends and family? Spread the word and bring them for fun visit and beautiful fall drive along the The Great River Road! 🦅😃🧑‍🚒👮‍♀️🧑‍⚕️🍁👍

Address

50 Pembroke Avenue S
Wabasha, MN
55981

Opening Hours

Monday 12am - 4pm
Wednesday 10am - 4pm
Thursday 10am - 4pm
Friday 10am - 4pm
Saturday 10am - 4pm
Sunday 10am - 4pm

Telephone

+16515654989

Website

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