Two Reservoirs Made Rains County the Eagle Capital

Rains County became the Eagle Capital of Texas in 1995. The legislative resolution looked ahead to Eagle Fest '96 and back to local work protecting bald eagles. Its geography was precise: Lake Fork, Lake Tawakoni, and the creek bottoms below their dams.

The resolution recorded 52 eagles on the two lakes in a 1994 count. That figure belongs to its year, but the habitat connection is durable. Wintering bald eagles gather near large lakes with open water, fish, waterfowl, and old roost trees. Texas Parks and Wildlife names both reservoirs among the places they use.

A bald eagle can arrive before the white head does. Young birds are mostly dark, while adults take four or five years to gain the familiar white head and tail. Eagles often choose tall roost trees with open views and room to take off. That makes the county title less like a mascot and more like an invitation to look carefully. In winter, the two reservoirs carry Rains County's name in the sky as well as on the map.