FAE, a majestic female bald eagle seen by many around the area, died on Wednesday from an unknown cause.
The bird arrived at the Mystic Lakes in 2023 after the death of an earlier female known as MK. Unlike most eagles in this region, FAE had not been banded by researchers. She became known simply as “Female Adult Eagle,” or FAE.
FAE and her male partner KZ quickly won the hearts of observers at the Mystic Lakes. Birders noted that FAE seemed intelligent, savvy and extremely wary of people. In late March 2024, FAE laid her first egg. That season, the pair raised three eaglets. Two died of unknown causes within weeks of leaving the nest. The third, 91C, broke a wing trying to fly back up into the nest but was rehabbed and released…