Live Eagle Cam — Big Bear, California

spideyman

Do we see a "pip"?

Hedda Gabler

spideyman said:

Do we see a "pip"?

Ohhhh, exciting! I wish this snow would melt!

spideyman

Thoughts and info re FOBBV

Snow…and more snow…and then more snow…

With the snow coming in yesterday, Jackie allowed Shadow four hours of egg-sitting but then spent the remainder of the day and night on the nest herself. During Shadow’s shift, one of the very rare times that we have seen it, he pooped off the side of the nest—Jackie does this often, especially during the night, and usually announces it loudly to the neighborhood when she does. Shadow is apparently more shy and quiet.

As always, Jackie trusts herself the most to have egg-duty whenever there is bad weather. Throughout most of the day and all night, she stayed on the eggs as the snow came down. She often laid completely still for long periods, sleeping until she was covered in snow. Then she stood up and shook it all off, checked and turned the eggs and hunkered down on top of them to start the process again.

Jackie and Shadow are built to handle this kind of weather. Even when Jackie is lying still and unmoving for a long period and getting covered in snow, she is fine. They each have over 7000 water-proof feathers covering their body, so the snow they shake off does not even make them wet. And under those feathers is a thick layer of down feathers that keep their body warm. It is like they are wearing a thick down jacket or wrapped in a waterproof comforter all the time. And those down feathers are what they tuck the eggs into. There are a few more days of snow predicted, but those nice feather coats will continue to protect them.

Regarding the eggs, they have not yet shown any sign of hatching. While it is less likely with each passing day that they will hatch, it is not our job, or anyone’s job, to make pronouncements about what is or is not happening. It is our job to observe and learn.

Without the actual facts in any particular situation, no one can tell you what is happening inside those eggs.

Facts we do have—

--Jackie’s eggs in the past have hatched at around 38-39 days from being laid. A few of Jackie’s eggs in the past did not hatch.

--bald eagle eggs have been recorded as hatching as much as 44 days from laying—we are on day 43 since the first egg was laid and day 40 since the 2nd egg was laid.

--something unusual happened with Jackie and Shadow for a few days last week that called their attention away from the nest and the eggs were uncovered for sometimes an hour or two at a time.

--bald eagles, including Jackie and Shadow, sometimes sit on eggs long past those human-recorded due dates. When bald eagles decide to stop incubating the eggs, it does not happen suddenly, but usually slowly as they reduce sitting time little-by-little over several days.

--the external conditions of each egg-laying season—exact temperatures, weather patterns, cosmic fluctuations, Jackie and Shadows shift-changes, etc.—vary from year to year

--nature does not always work the way human minds have determined that it ‘should’—for example, according to aerodynamics, it's impossible for bees to fly. Apparently, they forgot to read the manual to know that they can’t fly. Bald eagles and eggs often do not read the manual.

--sometimes whatever is being born or hatched has a mind of its own about the timing—such as, sometimes human babies or puppies are born prematurely or sometimes labor has to be induced to make it happen.

--Jackie and Shadow returned to their more normal patterns of sitting on the eggs continuously throughout the day and at this point are continuing to incubate the eggs.

Facts we do not have—

--what the impact the eggs being uncovered for long periods for a few days had on the development of the eggs. It could have slowed the incubation, it could have stopped it, or any number of other options.

--what called Jackie and Shadow away from full attention the eggs last week—solar flares, earthquake, confused hormones, intruder eagles, etc.—or whether whatever effected Jackie and Shadow also effected the eggs.

--what the timing is for these particular eggs in these particular, unmeasured conditions.

--the exact condition of development inside the eggs at any point, which could only somewhat be determined by ‘candling’ (holding the eggs in front of a light to see the shapes or shadows inside the shell). Jackie and Shadow have not figured out how to turn on a flashlight, so candling has not been done.

--whether the eggs were fertilized—sometimes eggs that do not hatch are eventually shown to have not gone through any development inside the shell.

--whether or not the eggs are still viable based on all of the above variables.

So, we do not speculate or predict or make pronouncements about what is or is not happening. We are not here to be all knowing or to make it easier to watch the unknown unfold before us. We are observers of nature. It teaches all of us eyes-wide-open observation skills and patience, appreciation and curiosity, all good traits to carry to every aspect of our lives.

Thank you for your joy in being able to watch Jackie and Shadow in their daily lives as the beauty of nature presents itself.

Sandy

Hedda Gabler

Great info spidey, thank you. 

spideyman

Update for Friday 24th FL Eagles
7:20pm A calm day comes to a close. M dropped 2 fish that E21 and E22 worked on. Later they were fed a bird. M roosts above them as they sleep. Adult on the upper branch may be R23-3, flew NW. Sleep safely All Eagles. We miss you Mom.

Hedda Gabler

M in Florida tried mating with new female. He dropped fish in nest trying to get kids to self feed. I remember, dad. 

I can’t hardly look at big bear cam. With all the information, it still makes me anxious. 

spideyman

Big Bear Lake- earlier today



Tonight

Hedda Gabler

Today is a sunny day for the Big Bear eagles. 

spideyman

FL
they had 2 feedings this morning dad dropped one fish or something and of course 21 got to it first then about 30 minutes later dad came in with another drop and 22 jumped on it manteling and ate the whole whatever it was lol both are in a food coma right now.

Big Bear
Cam was down just after sunrise. Back up again. Appears they are "strengthening"   the nest with additional  wood pieces.

spideyman

GNTLGNT

Hedda Gabler

Aww dang. 

FlakeNoir

🥺💜

spideyman

Friends of Big Bear Valley and Big Bear Eagle Nest Cam 7h · ‘Sticky’ shift changes and little nature breaks… Yesterday morning, after Shadow’s first all-nighter on the nest this season, Jackie came in before sunrise to give him some time off. Shadow didn’t wait long before turning the nest over to Jackie. He shook off his wings on the front porch and headed out for a well-earned break--he was on the nest for about 17 hours, not quite as long as Jackie’s record of over 27 hours. The nest camera was down at that time, so we watched this shift change from Cam2, the wide-angle camera. With snow on the solar panels, the batteries are slow to recharge and did not have enough power to run the main camera. While Jackie and Shadow were changing places, the night light on the nest went off—and they did not seem to notice. That’s because it is an Infrared light, which is not visible to either eagles or humans. The camera lens, however, can pick up that infrared light and allow us to see what’s happening on the nest at night even though it still looks dark to the eagles. Shadow brought Jackie some breakfast a few hours later, which she happily and loudly claimed as ‘mine, mine’ then chowed down quickly before returning to the eggs. The main camera came back online in time to see Shadow return with a lovely stick for the nest. He tried putting it along the edge of the nest, but that didn’t seem right, so he put it on Jackie’s back. Apparently, Jackie wasn’t in the mood for shenanigans today so she got up immediately and let him have the nest bowl for egg-duty. Shadow looked a little shocked at how easy that was but happily moved in to take over his job. After a few hours on the nest, Shadow flew off the front porch and then returned in under a minute. He probably just needed a bathroom break and he is much more modest about doing those on camera than Jackie. She simply moves to the edge of the nest, does her business and then chortles out an announcement to the neighborhood that that has been taken care of. Jackie returned to the nest in the early afternoon and had a lunch of some frozen leftovers before settling into the nest bowl. The cameras have been up and down as our batteries run out of charge, which they are doing because the system is solar powered and the solar panels have been either covered with snow or shaded in cloudy weather. They will likely be down for the day until the snow stops and we get more sun tomorrow. Since the nest is in the middle of the national forest, with no electric service, solar power is the only thing available. And with roads closed and over 4 or 5 feet of snow on the ground, it is not possible to get to the solar panels or equipment. Jackie and Shadow know how to handle the snow much better than our equipment does, so we will simply know that they are fine until we get to check back in on them when the sun comes out. Thank you for your understanding! Sandy

Hedda Gabler

I was wondering what was going on. Thanks!

GNTLGNT

....sure, it's OK when an eagle loudly announces a good poopy, but I get scathing looks.....

spideyman

Friends of Big Bear Valley and Big Bear Eagle Nest Cam

4h  · 

Update: The cameras are back up. Thank you to the beautiful sunshine for recharging the batteries through the solar panels. The panels still have a bit of snow on them but it should melt off quickly today.

On the nest, since the eggs are being left alone for a while—Shadow dropped in for 15 minutes of sitting on the eggs--it appears that Jackie and Shadow may be giving up on these eggs hatching. Since the eggs do not have snow on them and are still unharmed, this is probably a very recent change. It is still possible that they will lay another clutch this season (it has happened with them before.) We will watch and see. In the meantime, thank you for watching our live stream cameras (both found at: https://www.friendsofbigbearvalley.org/ or https://www.youtube.com/@fobbvcam) and please enjoy the video of Spirit in the

Original post:

Happy 1st birthday to Spirit!

Spirit (Jackie and Shadow’s chick from last season) hatched on this day last year.

Since the camera is still down due to the snow, here is a video tribute to Spirit to celebrate her 1st birthday. For those new to the camera, you can watch a chick grow up; for those who watched it, you can enjoy reminiscing.

Spirit is not tagged, so we have no way of knowing where she might be. We will celebrate her being out there somewhere, flying free in all her feistiness!

Regarding our cameras being down, our valley received at least 9 feet of snow over the past week. That snow has likely covered at least part of the solar panels that generate the electricity to run the equipment and cameras. With the sun out, the snow is melting and everything should come back online as soon as the panels have had enough sun to recharge the batteries.

Since the equipment is out in the forest with no roads to it and this level of snow, we cannot just go out and brush the snow off the panels.

So, everyone please think ‘sunshine.’ We hope to have the cameras back up soon!

Thank you for your understanding.

Sandy

Hedda Gabler

I can see them and they are hanging in there with these eggs, for now. 

The E’s in florida are spreading their wings and jumping around. I keep waiting for a gust of wind to sail one right the hell off!

spideyman

Friends of Big Bear Valley and Big Bear Eagle Nest Cam

14h  · 

Serious discussions…plus a BIG ANNOUNCEMENT!

Jackie seems to have accepted that these eggs are not going to hatch. Yesterday, she made a midday visit to the nest for some leftover frozen lunch, but did not sit on the eggs all day.

As has happened in the past, Shadow seems more reluctant to let go. He sat a few times on the nest, but was in and out, like he couldn’t make up his mind. He left the eggs alone for a few hours…

…then apparently couldn’t handle leaving them by themselves all night. He returned last night after dark to incubate the eggs again. Shortly after he settled in, Jackie arrived. They had a loud, serious back and forth discussion. After what sounded like an intense argument, and then some begging from Jackie, Shadow got up and flew off the front porch.

Jackie acted a bit unsure about getting into the nest bowl, then finally moved in and sat on the eggs…but she only stayed put for 3 minutes. She got up and flew off the back porch toward Shadow on a nearby roost tree. As soon as she left the nest, Shadow started chortling from the roost tree, sounding upset. They argued back and forth again. Within a minute of them finishing that discussion, Shadow arrived back on the nest and took over sitting on the eggs for the night.

It seems that Jackie, as she has done in the past, was working to get Shadow to accept what was happening with the eggs. Since she only stayed a few minutes, she may have only come in to sit on the eggs so that Shadow would leave. When she left, Shadow’s loud and immediate reaction, then lots of intense chortling back and forth seemed again like an argument. Apparently, Shadow did not agree with her decision to leave the eggs. To fix it, he came to the nest immediately to sit on the eggs himself. He spent the whole night on the nest, leaving about 4:30 this morning. So, in spite of what Jackie may have wanted, he did what he needed to do.

Today, it seems that Jackie finally convinced him to accept what was happening—neither of them visited the nest or sat on the eggs all day.

From here, we will see what happens with the eggs. It is possible that a raven or other predator might get them. It is possible that they get buried into the nest if Jackie and Shadow start bringing sticks. It is possible that Fiona (the flying squirrel who visits the nest at night) will try to carry them away—she has tried in the past, but the eggs were way too big for her to pick up.

…we will also watch to see what happens with laying new eggs. It is possible that Jackie will lay another clutch of eggs. Bald eagles normally lay one clutch per year, but when something happens to the first eggs, they sometimes lay a second clutch. Jackie has done this in the past and has laid eggs as late as March. Jackie and Shadow were viewed mating since these original eggs were laid, so anything is possible. As always, they and mother nature get to determine what happens from here.

Thank you all for your patience and your continued curiosity and willingness to learn as we watch to see what they teach us next.

BIG ANNOUNCEMENT…Jackie and Shadow are about to become genuine Movie Stars! They and their nest are being featured in an upcoming episode of the TV show NCIS! The episode will air at 9 pm on Monday, March 13 on CBS. Be sure to check them out in their fun new roles.

Sandy

Hedda Gabler

Thanks spidey. I appreciate you bringing updates here. 

I saw a YouTube clip of Fl. Dad, M.  It is hilarious. 

 Apparently his girlfriend is wanting to mate. M is busy. The clip shows them on a branch together, both of them just chattering away at each other. The female keeps moving closer and closer. M takes a step away. She moves in again.  He jumps over her to the far side of the branch.  The whole time they are talkin’ and talkin ‘.   It made me laugh. 

Come on M, give the girl a little sumpin’ sumpin’. 😂

GNTLGNT

...sounds like the eagle version of the famous skits from Ruth Buzzi and Arte Johnson on Laugh In......"then you know what I'm here after"..........

spideyman

Heartbreaking, the ravens do what nature does............ the nest is now empty.

Hedda Gabler

spideyman said:

Heartbreaking, the ravens do what nature does............ the nest is now empty.

I see one egg out of the nest towards lake.  They did mate again a few weeks back so maybe another try?

spideyman

The egg out of the next is just a shell the ravens left.

Friends of Big Bear Valley and Big Bear Eagle Nest Cam

3h  · 

Jackie’s favorite nighttime pal…

(…plus nest updates…)

Fiona, the San Bernardino flying squirrel that lives with her mate, Fast Freddie, in the nest tree somewhere below Jackie and Shadow’s nest, visited the empty nest several times in the past couple nights. With those ‘big giant birds’ not at home, Fiona returned to her normal, nearly nightly, visiting routine. She is such a brave little squirrel, that she often pops in even when Jackie is sitting on the nest at night and she almost always earns a wing slap or two from Jackie for her bravery. Fiona is usually looking for left-over tidbits of food…or maybe she’s just working to keep Jackie on her toes guarding the nest.

When Fiona visited in the wee hours yesterday morning, she zipped in and out looking for anything she could find and even took a quick sniff of the eggs. Of course, she already knew better than to try and pick them up. Even though each 3 inch egg is only one third of Fiona's 10-inch length, it weighs almost the same as she does—about 4-1/2 ounces. She has tried to pick one up in the past by putting her little front legs around the egg and moving in all directions trying to lift it. But that big, stubborn egg did not even budge.

Since Jackie and Shadow finally accepted that these eggs were not going to hatch, neither of them has been at the nest for the past two days. The eggs were over two weeks past the average hatch time before they decided to stop incubating and protecting them. Yesterday a raven visited and saw the unattended eggs, but did nothing. Today, a pair of ravens decided it was time to clean up the nest for their neighbors.

It turns out that the eggs had not developed at all, so there were no chicks inside either egg. While the eggs not hatching is very sad for all of us, the good news is that there were no chicks in them during the intense snow storms and cold temperatures that the nest and Jackie and Shadow have endured in the past two weeks.

Without doing tests on the eggs themselves, there is no way of knowing why they did not develop. We will instead focus on seeing what Jackie and Shadow do next. Jackie has once before laid a second clutch of eggs in the same season, and she has laid eggs as late as March.

. . . BIG NEWS—for anyone who did not already hear about this--Jackie and Shadow are about to become genuine Movie Stars! They and their nest are being featured in an upcoming episode of the TV show NCIS! The episode will air at 9 pm on Monday, March 13 on CBS. Be sure to check them out in their fun new roles. (Special note—all the footage of the nest for this show came from our nest camera, so there were no film crews or anyone else here intruding into Jackie and Shadow’s habitat.)

Thank you for being with us as we continue viewing Jackie and Shadow’s fascinating journey!

Sandy

p.s. You can go to our website https://www.friendsofbigbearvalley.org/ to view the live stream cameras, shop Jackie and Shadow merchandise (including some new items!), join or donate to FOBBV. Thank you!

Hedda Gabler

I wonder what part they play in NCIS?  That’s really exciting and might drive up donations to protect the eagles all over.