EAGLE REPORTS: It used to be rare that we had an eagle report
but, more and more, they’re becoming almost a daily occurrence.
That’s a good thing, of course.

Here’s the latest: Sue Nelson of Smethport tells us she was
returning home from Olean, N.Y., on Sunday when they saw a pair of
bald eagles sitting on a dead tree in a swamp near Eldred.

We would have to assume these American bald eagles are the same
ones spotted at various locations in the region, apparently focused
on Smethport (It is “the hub,” after all.).

Craig Childs of Bradford called Monday evening to tell us about
his eagle sighting – or should we say “eagles” sighting.

On the first day of walleye season, he and Mark Pettinato were
fishing on the reservation – off Quaker exit – on the Allegheny
River. They saw 10 eagles flying around and watched them for about
30-45 minutes. They were 1- 2-year-old birds.

“I’ve seen five before but never 10.”

“Everyone I talked to said ‘that is something to see.'”

He said this is a prime spot to look for eagles. “There’s a lot
of eagles along that area. A lot of them.”

AND ALSO: Speaking of wild things, another Smethport caller
tells us she’s had quite a run of returning creatures in her yard
over the past couple of weeks. She numbers among her visitors two
bears, a hummingbird, a Baltimore oriole eating out of the
hummingbird feeder, a rose-breasted grosbeak, and two weasels.

LOCAL ANGLE: David Halberstam, the Pulitzer Prize winning author
who died recently in a car accident, has connections to
Johnsonburg.

That’s the word in a recent edition of the Ridgway Record.

According to the story, Halberstam’s father, Charles, had come
to Johnsonburg in early 1900 and became a soldier in World War
I.

His connection to Johnsonburg reportedly is included in two
books, in an essay he wrote in the book, “Defining a Nation,” and
in “The Education of a Coach” by his cousin Mike Halberstam.

Halberstam is perhaps best remembered for his reporting on the
Vietnam War but also published many best-selling books over the
course of his multi-decade career.

TODAY’S QUOTE: “Thus the state of the First Amendment: You can
say anything you want so long as it is politically correct,” said
Mark Tapscott, editorial page editor, the Washington Examiner,
2006.