By Andrew Berry
Introducing Gwaihir Bernheim
Newest tracked golden eagle’s journey takes an unexpected turn, raising questions about migration, partnership, and what we really know
The votes are in, and Bernheim Forest and Arboretum’s newest golden eagle now has a name: Gwaihir Bernheim, the Wind Lord of Bernheim Forest.
The name, drawn from the literature of J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings and chosen by public vote, evokes bravery, strength, and heroic journeys. But in the weeks since his tagging, this eagle has become more than a iconic symbol. He has become a mystery.
On February 27, Gwaihir Bernheim lifted off from Bernheim and began his spring migration north. At first his movements followed a pattern researchers have come to expect from golden eagles wintering in the eastern United States. He traveled through Kentucky and into Indiana along a familiar corridor, one used by other tracked birds in years past.
Then, without warning, he changed course.
Instead of continuing north, Gwaihir turned southwest, cutting across southern Indiana into the Shawnee National Forest of Illinois. He crossed the Mississippi River and pushed deeper into the Mark Twain National Forest of Missouri—a move that immediately set him apart.
What followed only deepened the intrigue.
On March 7, he continued to head west, passing through the southern edge of Kansas City, Mo., before continuing across the Great Plains of Kansas and Nebraska. There, he traced the vast, rolling grasslands of the Sandhills, a landscape more often associated with prairie migrations than with eastern golden eagles.
From there, he crossed into South Dakota at the Pine Ridge Indian Reservation and continued northwest, flying directly across the Black Hills National Forest. At one point, his path brought him within a mile and a half of Devils Tower, Wyoming—a striking geological landmark rising abruptly from the plains.
By March 16, Gwaihir was last recorded in southeastern Montana, still moving steadily northwest. For researchers who have spent years tracking golden eagles, this was not just unusual. It was unprecedented.
A Route Few Have Taken
Gwaihir appears to be following a migratory route very few golden eagles from the eastern population are known to take.
“With every bird we tag, we learn a little bit more and sometimes we are completely surprised by their movements,” said Dr. Tricia Miller, Executive Director of Conservation Science Global. “Several birds that use the eastern U.S. during winter have migrated northwest and ended up in places like the Northwest Territories, the Yukon, or even Alaska. Most of those birds were captured in the Arkansas Ozarks, but one was captured much further east in Georgia. Now Gwaihir appears to be on a similar track.”
Even more striking is how he got there.
Miller continued, “Every other golden eagle tagged by the research project has taken a general northward path during spring migration. Gwaihir surprised us by migrating over 500 miles west to Kansas before making a turn northwest.
The big question is how did he wind up at Bernheim and will he do it again next year?”
Rethinking What We Know
For years, Bernheim’s golden eagle research has helped illuminate the hidden lives of these elusive birds. Through satellite tracking and long-term observation, scientists have learned that eastern golden eagles travel thousands of miles between wintering grounds in the United States and breeding territories in northern Canada.
They have also learned that relationships between eagles are not always straightforward.
Athena, Bernheim’s most well-known eagle, has provided some of the clearest insights. Tracked since 2019, she was once paired with a male named Harper. The two often shared winter territory at Bernheim but migrated separately and reunited months later at their nesting grounds in Wapusk National Park in northern Manitoba.
After Harper’s loss in 2021, there were open questions about whether Athena would find a new mate and maintain her nesting territory.
In 2024, researchers got their answer when Athena was documented at her nest with a chick.
Since then, she has been repeatedly observed at Bernheim with a new male, with GPS locations revealing this to be Gwaihir Bernheim. Their GPS tracks frequently overlapped and they shared sometimes roosted nearby. Images captured the two together in calm, non-aggressive behavior, strongly suggesting a bonded pair, at least during the winter months.
But Gwaihir’s migration is now complicating that narrative. His path suggests that winter partners may not always be breeding mates or at least not in ways scientists fully understand.
It also raises the possibility that some golden eagles may follow entirely different migratory strategies than previously documented.
The Questions Ahead
Where is Gwaihir Bernheim headed? Will Athena return to her nest and be greeted by another mate? Or will she be, in a sense, stood up and left waiting while Gwaihir follows a dramatically different path across the continent?
And perhaps most intriguingly: could he still loop back toward the Hudson Bay region and reunite with her after all?
For now, there are no clear answers.
What is clear is that early assumptions may have been premature. The story of Gwaihir and of Bernheim’s golden eagles more broadly is still unfolding. There are many, many miles yet to be flown.
Watching From Afar
One of the challenges in following these birds is the nature of the technology itself. Gwaihir Bernheim and another eagle, Hermes, are equipped with satellite transmitters, allowing researchers to receive relatively consistent location updates, even as the birds move into remote regions.
Athena, however, carries a different type of transmitter. Her device relies on cellular networks, meaning she may only “check in” when she comes within range of a cell tower, something that becomes increasingly rare as she moves into the far north. As a result, long stretches of her journey may remain unknown.
Over the coming weeks, researchers expect Gwaihir to enter some of the most remote landscapes in North America while crossing high mountains, vast plains, and into the wilderness regions of western North America.
Athena and Hermes have also migrated from Kentucky and followed familiar paths to Michigan. Athena has already crossed by now into Canada at Sault St. Marie, Mich. Hermes got stuck in Michigan’s Thumb, the peninsula that extends into Lake Huron north of Detroit. He ended up making an 18-mile crossing of Saginaw Bay, an exceptional distance for open water crossing from what we have seen in previous eagles.
A Story Still Unfolding
For Bernheim Forest and Arboretum, the tracking of these eagles is both a scientific endeavor and a public story that has drawn thousands of people into following the movements of birds they may never see in person.
Each new data point adds to a growing understanding of how golden eagles move across the continent, how they form and maintain relationships, and how they adapt to changing landscapes.
Gwaihir Bernheim has shown that each new bird can also upend expectations. His journey is not just a path across a map. It is a reminder that even after years of study, much about these apex predators remains unknown. As spring migration continues, researchers and the public will be watching closely.
Bernheim Forest and Arboretum extends its gratitude to the many partners and supporters who make this research possible. Special thanks go to the Beckham Bird Club for its ongoing support of the Bernheim Golden Eagle Project, as well as the Kentucky Audubon Council, Birds of Bernheim supporters, and the many members, volunteers, and donors whose contributions sustain this work.
