Wildlife sightings by members and employees at Great Hope Golf Course, Salisbury, Md., are a regular occurrence at the 200-acre facility set amid the marshes, ponds, forests, wild meadows and nearby farmland of Somerset County.
But when a large number of bald eagles showed up this week, it took everyone by surprise.
"You could stand here and count a dozen of them," golf course superintendent Lee Simms said from inside the clubhouse. "Once you got out on the course, they were all over the place. It was quite spectacular."
At least 40 of the birds could be seen "swooping and soaring," while on normal days there might be only two to four regulars who roost in nearby trees, he said.
The birds showed up on a cold, windy day when no one was playing golf, and Simms speculated that might be why they stopped by.
Although Canada geese and great blue herons are used to the golfers, eagles tend to keep their distance from people, he said.
Since bald eagles are migratory birds, they might have stopped for the day en route to another spot, Simms said.
