Most golfers are happy with an eagle, but there’s one that’s the focus of a fundraiser for a golf course in South Surrey.
More specifically, it’s a bald eagle nest at Nico Wynd Golf Course, and it has to be moved because the tree where the nest resides has been compromised. There’s also an osprey nest at the opposite end of the course that must be moved because that tree is also, untrustworthy.
“We have been advised by the arborist that the trees where the nests are currently located could fall over any time,” Nico Wynd strata council member Peter Ufford noted. “We will be erecting two tall poles with platforms to host (their nests) at either end of our golf course.”
Myles Lamont of Terra Fauna presented a proposal focused on preserving and supporting an active eagle nesting area, Ufford shared, and the project is designed to ensure the longterm sustainability of the birds’ habitat while working within environmental regulations and best practices.
“Eagles vacate the nest in mid-September … we’ll have this big, 60-70 foot pole erected close to it with a platform, and then when the eagles are gone, the arborist can come in and bring the tree down. And apparently, upon their return, the eagles will say, ‘Here’s a new platform (for our nest).’ It’s a mystery to me, but that’s what we’re told,” said Ufford.
The estimated cost of the project is approximately $30,000, which will go toward careful habitat protection and enhancement, professional environmental planning and monitoring, the installation and support of a safe and sustainable nesting environment, and co-ordination with municipal requirements and wildlife standards, a GoFundMe set up to help support the project said.
An application has already been submitted to the City of Surrey as part of the approval process, and “we are working toward gathering full project details, timelines, and implementation plans,” the site states.
In addition to the GoFundMe, Nico Wynd Golf Course is holding a fundraiser on Thursday, Aug. 13 to help raise the money that is required, and Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke is expected to attend, as well as other elected officials, Ufford said.
Lamont will be there as well, Ufford said, and so will eagle expert and environmentalist David Hancock, known for spending his life protecting the “bald” raptors.
“Anyone anyone can come. Everyone is invited,” Ufford said, adding there will be a presentation from Lamont and a chance to view the current bald eagle nest.
Nico Wynd Golf Course is located just off Crescent Road in South Surrey, at 3601 Nico Wynd Drive.