Eagle Days coming to Squaw Creek – St. Joseph Post Archive

Staff from the Dickerson Park Zoo will present a program with captive eagles. At a previous Eagle Days, Pam Price of the zoo gave an eagle named Phoenix an outdoor break between shows. Photo courtesy MDC

Squaw Creek National Wildlife Refuge will open up for the 38th annual Eagle Days this weekend.

The free event will take place on Saturday, Dec. 3 and Sunday, Dec. 4.

The Missouri Department of Conservation (MDC) and partners will host the event which offers participants a close-up look at eagles in an indoor presentation by Dickerson Park Zoo staff. Outdoors, visitors often spot waterfowl and eagles attracted by the refuge’s marshes.

Wetlands at the refuge near Mound City, north of St. Joseph, attract large flocks of ducks and geese migrating southward ahead of cold winter weather. The eagles follow and feed on waterfowl or fish in the marsh pools. A driving tour of the refuge offers visitors a chance to see eagles, waterfowl, and other wildlife. MDC staff will be present along the tour route at nature interpretive stations, including some with spotting scopes to view eagles.

An annual highlight of Eagle Days is the Dickerson Park Zoo program. The zoo staff displays eagles that have been rehabilitated from injuries but cannot be released back into the wild. Visitors get a close view of eagles and interesting tips about their abilities in the wild. Live eagle shows will be presented hourly 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Sunday.

Bald eagles are often viewed at Eagle Days by visitors taking the driving tour through the Squaw Creek National Wildlife Refuge. Interpretive stations along the tour route include spotting scopes to see wildlife in the marshes. Photo courtesy MDC

The refuge driving tours and nature interpretive stops will be open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Saturday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Sunday. Guided bus tours of the refuge and food vendors will also be available.

The Squaw Creek refuge is reached via Interstate 29 by taking the U.S. 159 exit west.

For more information about Eagle Days at the Squaw Creek National Wildlife Refuge, call 816-271-3100, or CLICK HERE.