The first nesting pair of eagles arrived in the vicinity of the Wilson Bridge in 1997, settling in a tree on the Maryland shore.
Things went well until 1999, when a construction worker cut down the tree holding the nest. The birds moved to a nearby tree but raised only one eaglet that year instead of the usual two or three, Koppie said.
Eagles wintering near the Potomac fight over food. Over 20 congregate on Rosilie Island.
(Stephanie Spears)
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In 2003, the nesting pair moved out to a cottonwood tree on Rosilie, several hundred yards from the mainland.
Workers at the Wilson Bridge project were astounded to be so close to the daily life of the birds, whom they nicknamed "George and Martha Wilson."
"They're completely at home out here," said Stephanie Spears, a senior environmental specialist on the $2.43 billion bridge project. "They're relaxed. They're doing what eagles do."
That includes building their nests -- a violent process in which the eagles gather sticks by flying into branches at a high speed and snapping them off. The workers have also witnessed eagle fights, as George drove away other eagles during talon-to-talon battles in midair.
And the workers watched as George and Martha raised two sets of young, including triplets in 2004 that were named after the two nearby states and the District -- "Ginny, Mary and Doc."
Spears recalled seeing the young birds take their first flight, edging out to the end of a branch and gingerly stepping off.
"It reminds me of a toddler taking their first steps, kind of big-eyed, excitable," she said.
At this time of year, a dozen or more transient eagles can sometimes be seen on Rosilie. During a trip there last week, Koppie spotted several perched on the island's south side. Several were young eagles, their distinctive white head patch not yet developed.
"Here is a classic loafing situation," he said. The eagles are often young and unattached, wandering across the country, he said. They are grateful for a spot where they can find other eagles and a ready supply of food.
The south side of the island is being transferred from the Peterson Cos., which owns National Harbor, to the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission.
The original plan for the southern tip was to make it a park with hiking trails and fishing piers. But now, park officials say, the eagles' end of the island will be kept in its current state and an observation trail built several hundred feet back. "Nothing at all is going to be done to the southern half of the property," said Chuck Montrie of the park and planning commission.
This setup will last as long as the eagles remain, officials said.
But how long will that be -- with the new Wilson Bridge not due to be completed until 2008 and National Harbor sometime thereafter?
Eagle experts said it's impossible to tell. Millar, of the Fish and Wildlife Service, said that she's known of eagles that had become used to droning traffic but were suddenly spooked away by a few people walking under their nesting trees.
"There is a point," she said, "where they just can't stand it anymore."
