Every winter, hundreds of bald eagles descend on the Sea-to-Sky community of Brackendale, north of Squamish.
But in recent years, their numbers have been dropping.
On Sunday, dozens of volunteers headed out for their annual count to see if the eagles are making a comeback.
By day's end, counters spotted 956 eagles -- more than last year's total of 755 but still far below past highs.
At the start of the decade, about 2,500 hundred eagles were counted. The all-time record was more than 3,700 eagles in 1994.
"So far the numbers are quite a lot lower than we would prefer," volunteer Anna Smith said Sunday.
Smith said recent salmon numbers have improved, which means there is food for the eagles.
But the eagles could have decided not to return because of an earlier lack of food.
In 2009, most eagles were counted at a local dump. There were about 360 there. This year, there were only 35.
It's possible some eagles went to Alaska where there are better salmon runs.
It could also indicate that a lot died off last year because it was a harsh winter and there wasn't a lot of food.
With a report from CTV British Columbia's Maria Weisgarber
