It’s about time for the bald eagle eggs to hatch at the live EagleCam in Virginia: over four weeks have passed since the first egg was laid, and the mother eagle is showing unusual restlessness and attentiveness to the eggs this morning. There was a report the other day that one of the eggs wobbled by itself in the nest.
I have a feeling that we’ll see an eagle hatch today. Keep your eye peeled here.
My initial calculations put it around this weekend. Been checking in nearly every day. Can’t wait.
35 days from the first egg-laying, I mean. That calculation.
Lots of activity this morning – here’s a couple more screenshots I took of the other one showing up with a twig… and then a branch.
http://i.imgur.com/HbPNM.jpg
http://i.imgur.com/EVFmj.jpg
I’m uploading all the interesting screenshots I take into this album:
http://motheyes.imgur.com/eagle#LDrym
That’s great, ’cause I always seem to miss the good action!
The cam footage is amazing. I just feel so jaded. I grew up in SE Alaska where bald eagles were a dime a dozen. They don’t instill the awe that ya’ll born and bred lower 48ers get.
I feel so callus and bad…
As part of my Wildlife Management Techniques class, I got to participate in a bald eagle and golden eagle capture a couple weeks ago. Absolutely incredible birds.
Jeez, you just wish you could reach out and tamp down the camera-side wall of the nest bowl! Mama’s watching something pretty intently!
Inane comment of the day, just posted to Eaglecam discussion thread:
So predictable.
Don’t be so cynical, Diane. The hatching of an eaglet totally balances out 9.6% unemployment, killing in the Middle East, and all the death and destruction of the earthquake and tsunami. Geez, you atheists are a negative bunch.
🙂
At least the eagles beat this “reason:”
http://religionpoisons.wordpress.com/2011/03/12/sorry-japan-this-is-why-god-was-busy/
Seems pretty similar to me: Eaglets, therefore God vs. Parking Space, therefore God. You just can’t argue with that kind of logic.
What’s really predictable is that with lives lost probably in the 10s of thousands in Japan, someone will find a baby in all the rubble somwhere, and that will be proof of god’s love and mercy.
A few hrs ago someone posted that they had earlier seen the eagle pull something white from the nest and eat it. The moderator hadn’t seen it, but it may have been a piece of eggshell.
Dang, I lucked out about an hour ago – male on eggs; female strolling around and then eating one of the two fish; male getting off eggs; eggs lolling about naked for awhile; giant foot enters frame, female sits on eggs, rocks back and forth like Ray Charles for awhile to settle in; female nibbles on the other fish.
Action!
I saw that! (well at least I think I saw the same thing, for me it was around 17:30 EST) She sort of trifled with the fish. She seemed really annoyed with something on her meal – flies I’m guessing. I could see quite a few of them milling about despite what looked like high winds.
No eagle bobbleheads today but there were hummingbirds hatched this morning on the hummingbird cam at http://phoebeallens.com.
OOOOOOOOOOH, thanks for that link!!! WOW!!
Also have you seen the 5-week old eaglets at Sutton Avian Research Center? http://www.suttoncenter.org/pages/live_eagle_camera. They’ve gotten so big
Yes, I’m a birdaholic posting on a cat lover’s website. (Although I like the kittehs too, with 4 birds in my living room I have to enjoy them vicariously).