Trapped in the confines of four walls, springtime spent in quarantine can feel uninspiring, if not isolating. But as Gregory Chiate’s son looked out of his window in Marin County one recent morning, he realized he wasn’t alone.

On top of a towering conifer outside perched a bald eagle: the first one his father had seen since they moved there 11 years ago.

The birds have been making a comeback, according to Shannon Burke, an interpretive naturalist with Marin County Parks, though it’s not necessarily because the area has been deserted by people. (Coyotes are a different story in San Francisco.)

She said sightings of bald eagles are uncommon, but not rare — especially now, during their spring migration. And the birds that breed around the Bay Area — “local nesters,” as Burke calls them — usually begin settling down during the months of March and April. They mate for life.

“The breeding numbers are still small, but in the wintertime we do get visitors,” Burke said.

Like the eagle in Chiate’s photo, the birds can reliably be seen around local waterways, like Nicasio Reservoir, Richardson Bay and Kent Lake, as well as the Bolinas coast.

“They can fly and catch fish from the surface, or they can be sneaky and fish from other birds,” Burke said. “They’re scavengers.”

And bit by bit, their numbers are recovering. Bald eagles were removed from the endangered species list in 2007, but the species was in danger of extinction just a few decades ago, mostly due to the pesticide DDT contaminating their food source.

“It shows how effective species conservation can be and that they really can bounce back,” Burke said.

And for Bay Area residents like Chiate, the eagle’s presence was uplifting — a welcome distraction from the challenges the last few weeks had presented.

“I felt like it was a sign in these troubled times that we are all going to be OK.”

Amanda Bartlett is an SFGATE associate digital reporter. Email: amanda.bartlett@sfgate.com | Twitter: @bybartlett

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